New Jersey Couple Need Not Turn Over Computer to Opposing Party in Lawsuit, Appellate Court Rules
A couple ordered to turn over their computer hard drive to public officials they sued does not have to give up their computer after all, a court has ruled.
The Appellate Division of the Superior Court of New Jersey has reversed a trial judge's May 19 order saying that Scott and Charlene "Charlie" Uhrmann had to relinquish their hard drive so the officials they sued could determine whether the Uhrmanns anonymously posted derogatory statements about the officials on the Internet.
After that ruling, the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey and Public Citizen agreed to represent the Uhrmanns in their request for appellate review of the trial court order. The groups noted that the hard drive contains financial and other personal information and said that the order violated free speech and privacy rights as well as established law on rules of discovery and on anonymous Internet postings.
In a one-paragraph ruling, the Appellate Division said that the requested information was beyond the scope of discovery, not relevant to the case and could lead to the disclosure of personal information.
posted by Fergie @ 7/09/2005 08:11:00 AM
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