Legal Resources for Bloggers

by Matt on Dec 15, 2009 in Blogging, Legal Issues, MY BEST POSTS

It was just a month ago that Dan Slee made this prediction about bloggers and the law:

“At some point I’m convinced someone will lose their house in the not too distant future over an internet blog post. It’s potentially that serious.”

With that in mind, I’m compiling this list of Legal Resources for Bloggers. My hope is that it’ll be a living document, and I’ll gladly update this with new links as I discover them, or as you send them to me. (Use the contact form or just leave a comment below.) I also hope this is beneficial for all bloggers, not just our hyperlocal crowd.

Legal Resources for U.S. Bloggers

EFF: Blogger’s Legal Guide
Based on my somewhat limited research, this is the pre-eminent resource for bloggers about the law. Lots of read and research.

Citizen Media Law Project (CMLP)
Its mission is “to provide legal assistance, education, and resources for individuals and organizations involved in online and citizen media.” It offers a searchable legal guide.

Online Media Legal Network
A project of the CMLP (above), it “connects lawyers from across the country with online journalists and digital media creators who need legal help.” Participating lawyers will “provide qualifying online publishers with pro bono and reduced fee legal assistance.”

Media Bloggers Association (MBA)
Founded in 2004 by several well-known bloggers. Since its creation, the MBA “has provided a wide range of legal support services to hundreds of bloggers facing legal threats related to their blogs.”

Center for Internet and Society (CIS)
Information resource from Stanford University

CyberSLAPP.org
Created by “a coalition of civil liberties and privacy groups (listed below) who have come together to protect the right to speak freely and anonymously on the internet.”

Media Law Resource Center (MLRC)
The MLRC is a non-profit that was formed “to monitor developments and promote First Amendment rights in the libel, privacy and related legal fields.” See below for related links.

MLRC: Libel and Related Lawsuits Against Bloggers
The MLRC offers a list of cases (with links) in which bloggers have been sued.

MLRC: Legal Actions Against Bloggers
This is a blog from the MLRC that seems to serve the same purpose as the link above. It may be a replacement for that link.

Chilling Effects
A project that “aims to help you understand the protections that the First Amendment and intellectual property laws give to your online activities.”

100 Free DIY Legal Resources on the Web
A big list of links.

Legal Resources for U.K. Bloggers

U.K. bloggers are invited to send in links for this section. For now, I’ll link to a few blog posts I’ve found that address legal issues for bloggers.

Talk About Local: Libel, defamation – keeping it legal

Philip John: Getting serious about hyperlocal, part 1: Legal issues and MA Online Journalism: Law for bloggers and journalists with Paul Bradshaw

Dan Slee: BE LEGAL: Six things a hyperlocal blogger really should know about the law

Paul Bradshaw: Presentation: Law for bloggers and journalists (UK)