The February 12, 2018 post Service of Process Through Social Media discussed how courts were increasingly allowing service of process through the Facebook social media platform. Twitter has now joined Facebook as an acceptable means of effecting service on a defendant who cannot be served in a more traditional manner.
Last month, the judge presiding over Democratic National Committee v. The Russian Federation, et al., Civil Action No. 18-3501 (S.D.N.Y. Aug. 6, 2018), entered an Order granting plaintiff leave to serve defendant WikiLeaks via Twitter. The Order was entered after plaintiff demonstrated through a brief and supporting Declaration that diligent attempts to serve WikiLeaks through “a variety of methods, including emails to an address provided by WikiLeaks on its website, and by contacting counsel who have represented WikiLeaks in other matters” had proved unsuccessful.
Although no reasons were given by the court for granting the motion, the judge must have been persuaded by counsel’s written submissions to exercise his authority under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and to permit service through Twitter, demonstrating, as we suggested in the February 12 article, that under the right set of circumstances, courts will grant requests to use a defendant’s social media account as an alternative means of effectuating service.
Rob Nussbaum has lectured numerous times on legal issues and social media and how social media and other electronic evidence may be admitted into evidence at trial. He concentrates his practice in general commercial litigation and appears regularly in New Jersey federal and state courts.
For any questions relating to whether your website or social media presence can be used against you as a basis for personal jurisdiction, please contact Robert B. Nussbaum, Esq. at Saiber LLC.