We saw a blurb in the WSJ (Wall Street Journal) about a San Francisco court ruling on web postings. Since this site and many other blogs create and write about others creations I thought it was very timely. In a nutshell the California State Supreme Court reversed a ruling by the appeals court that finds individuals are generally immune from liability when publishing content that was written by someone else. So what does this mean? I am by no means a legal expert and the views expressed here are just that. Any questions about your content or that of others, please consult with your own legal counsel.There is a term that is used called public domain. So the theory is that if it exists and is general knowledge can you then recreate it or publish on your site or through any other forms of communications. In the case that was in question, the plaintiff had received some information via an email, and then published the identical content on forums. This does not however give away the rights of articles that are filed and protected under copyright laws. Many authors on blogs, and websites will publish their content. But fail to protect those intellectual rights by filing with the proper bodies.
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