...finally and deservedly so. Given the horrendous nature of the defamation, sexual harassment, and/or threats of sexual and criminal violence for which these individuals are responsible it is a reasonable bet that, as their identities become public, Mr. Ciolli will not be the only person unemployable in the legal profession. (The link, above, also includes a link to the complaint which has details of the tortious abuse and harassment the defendants' victims suffered.) Kudos to attorney David Rosen and my former colleague Mark Lemley for representing pro bono the victims.
UPDATE: Bizarrely, two law professors, Anne Althouse (Wisconsin) and Glenn Reynolds (Tennessee), make light of the plaintiffs' claims, and are duly taken to task here.
ANOTHER: This blogger also takes issue with Professors Althouse and Reynolds.
AND ONE MORE: More on the case from the Wall Street Journal law blog, which includes the following remarkable comment by Eric Goldman (Santa Clara): “'People say nasty things on message boards all the time, but we don’t have cause of action just for hurt feelings," says Goldman. 'It’s too early to tell' whether the plaintiffs were legitimately threatened or defamed by the posts, or the court finds this to be an overreaction, he says." Of course, the complaint did not state a cause of action for "hurt feelings," but for defamation, portraying the plaintiffs in a "false light," intentional infliction of emotional distress, invasion of privacy, and the like. One wonders what Professor Goldman's standards of decency must be like if he really thinks that any grown-up is going to dismiss the lawsuit as an "overreaction."
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