Yelp Ordered to Identify User Accused of Defaming Tax Preparer
- Google, Facebook supported anonymity as a free-speech right
- Tax preparer got negative review for allegedly sloppy return
The Yelp Inc. application is displayed on for a photograph an Apple Inc. iPhone in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Saturday, Oct. 28, 2017.
Photographer: Andrew Harrer/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Yelp Inc. can’t shield the identify of an anonymous reviewer who posted allegedly defamatory statements about a tax preparer.
The ruling Monday by a California state appeals court is a setback for websites in an ongoing battle to protect their users, as well as their own businesses, from lawsuits they say are preempted by free-speech rights.