ISPs to duck legal costs in message board libel cases

Website owners and ISPs may be exempt from paying legal fees in court cases regarding libellous postings on discussion forums - but only if they reveal the identity of the user responsible for such messages.

Financial website Interactive Investor took internet business Totalise to court last month in an appeal over payment of legal costs following an earlier libel case.

Totalise had demanded to know the identity of an Interactive Investor user who allegedly posted malicious comments about Totalise on a message board.

The user, known as Zeddust, made similar comments on the Motley Fool message board.

Totalise sued Interactive Investor in an attempt to get hold of the details of Zeddust in order to begin prosecution proceedings, but it won exemption from paying nearly £20,000 in legal costs after revealing his identity.

Interactive had sought to protect its user under the terms of the 1998 Data Protection Act and its privacy policies, but the judge presiding over the first case ruled it must disclose the user's identity and pay nearly £20,000 in legal costs.

But Interactive Investor won its appeal, with that judge ruling that the legal costs should be transferred to Totalise. That decision could affect all ISPs and website owners.

Jonathan Armstrong, senior associate at law firm Eversheds, said: "ISPs are more likely to disclose user information if they get some recompense for costs that previously they'd had to foot themselves.

"The judge implies in his ruling that ISPs and websites should be entitled to legal costs. The cost of finding out who's responsible for messages and taking legal advice is a burden to ISPs."

Armstrong added: "Most ISP privacy policies will need reviewing in respect to this case."