An SA court has found Google responsible for links defamatory material.
The South Australian Supreme Court has found Google legally responsible for defamation through search links.
According to The Conversation, Dr Janice Duffy has been trying to have defamatory content removed from Google search results for more than six years.
Ripoff Reports, a US based website published reviews of Duffy that she was unable to have removed due to US defamation laws where websites are not liable for comments made my users and defamation can be hard to prove.
So Duffy went to Google to remove the links from the search results.
The court found that Google found to be obliged to censor its search results once aware of the defamatory search results. Google had removed some links from its Australian domain but left many of the links from other domains active, potentially further damaging Duffy’s reputation.
The case will go back to court on November 3, when damages will be established. Google may appeal the court’s decision to the High Court.
