California Appellate Tracker

Doe 2 v. Superior Court

August 9, 2016

To discover the identity of a person who posted an anonymous Internet comment, plaintiff must present prima facie evidence of all elements of a defamation claim; here, plaintiff fell short as the comment was non-actionable opinion, not defamatory fact.

Under Krinsky v. Doe 6 (2008) 159 Cal.App.4th 1154, before a defamation plaintiff may obtain discovery of the identity of an anonymous poster of allegedly defamatory content on the internet, the defamation plaintiff must present prima facie evidence establishing all elements of a defamation claim against the anonymous poster. Here, the trial court erred in ordering discovery of the poster’s identity since the defamation plaintiff failed to show that the allegedly false material constituted statements of fact rather than nonactionable opinion.

California Court of Appeal, Second District, Division 3 (Hogue, J., sitting by assignation); August 2, 2016; 2016 WL 4097089

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Doe 2 v. Superior Court

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