Bloggers beware: the legal risks of posting online.

• Author: Spendlove, Gretta
• Position: Legal Brief

A lawyer working for a legal defender's office published a blog about bird-watching, photography and her clients. On her blog, she referred to her clients by their first name, a derivative of their first name or their jail identification number. Her blog was open to the public and was not password-protected.

In addition to describing a judge as "Judge Clueless," the lawyer included such descriptions of her clients as, "this stupid kid is taking the rap for his drug-dealing dirt bag of an older brother." The lawyer was terminated from her job and her state's bar administrator filed charges against her, claiming improper disclosure of confidential client information. The lawyer countered that her clients' identities were adequately disguised.

Bloggers can make or break reputations. They can bring in money with them or subject themselves to lawsuits or criminal prosecution. Though blogging is a way to keep communication channels open with friends, family and even strangers, bloggers should be aware of the legal implications of their online updates.

Disclosing Private Information

The essence of a public blog is to widely disburse facts and opinions. When those facts are private or protected, the blogger may get sued or censured. The legal defender described above had an ethical responsibility, as an attorney, to keep client information confidential. When she revealed that client information, the state bar challenged her license.

Similarly, police arrested and jailed a Virginia blogger who published photographs, names and addresses of members of her local drug enforcement task force, in violation of a state law prohibiting disclosing personal information about policemen with intent to coerce, intimidate or harass. In 2006, Apple Computer sued numerous bloggers who posted information leaked prior to the release of an Apple product. Apple claimed the information constituted trade secrets.

Libel and Defamation

Some of the most colorful blog lawsuits involve pornography actresses suing owners of a pornography blog. In one case, a blogger posted a photograph of a woman in a sexual act and identified the woman as former Playboy model, Christi Lake. Lake sued for defamation a false statement of fact, whether written or oral, that is communicated to a third-party and injures the subject's reputation.

More prosaically, in January 2009, Butler University sued a blogger identifying himself as "Soodo Nym" for defaming two university administrators. And, in...