Dominick v. MySpace

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) asked a judge in Illinois to reject a Petition to identify an anonymous MySpace user who allegedly posted fake profiles of an Illinois official because the request would violate both the First Amendment and federal statute.

In May of 2008, Cicero Town President Larry Dominick asked a Cook County Circuit Court judge to order the disclosure of the identities of the author of two MySpace profiles that allegedly included defamatory comments and unnamed privacy violations. In its amicus brief, however, EFF argued that the petition violates the First Amendment right to remain anonymous until a litigant can demonstrate a viable legal claim.

Outcome: Following the filing of EFF's amicus brief, Dominick dismissed his Petition on June 13, 2008, effectively ending the matter.

EFF was assisted in the matter by Charles Mudd, Jr., and Sophie Dye of Mudd Law Offices in Chicago.