02 October 2009 | Author: D. Warburton Search Copywriter

Twitter used to deliver UK court injunction

A UK Twitter user whose anonymous posts breached the copyright held by a blogger has been issued with a High Court injunction which demands that the user reveal their identity and desist posting under a false identity.

The user posted tweets under the name @blaneysblarney, claiming to be Donal Blaney of right-wing political blog Blaney's Blarney. BBC News reports that the real Mr Blaney described the imposter's comments as "mildly objectionable" and turned to Twitter to serve the injunction directly rather than spend additional time contacting the social networking site's Californian headquarters.

This is believed to be the first time Twitter has been used to serve an injunction. According to technology-savvy solicitor Danvers Baillieu, UK law states that injunctions are equally valid whether delivered in person or served through fax, e-mail and even social networking sites.

Mr Baillieu explains: "The rules already allow for electronic service of some documents, so that they can be sent by e-mail, and it should also be possible to use social networks."

Mr Blaney is certainly no novice when it comes to issuing injunctions, as the blogger owns the law firm serving the court order. He pointed to a recent case of Facebook being used to deliver a court order in Australia against a couple defaulting on their mortgage payments as the reasoning behind his use of Twitter.

Posting on his blog today, Mr Blarney proclaimed: "Today is a great day for the overwhelming majority of well-meaning, decent people who use the internet and a bad day for bullies."