Charges against Craigslist for their “Adult Services” section dismissed by Illinois District Court
By Ye (Helen) He – Edited by Eric Engle
Dart v. Craigslist, Inc., No. 09 C 1385 (N.D. Ill. Oct. 20, 2009)
Opinion
The United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois held, on Craigslist’s motion for judgment on the pleadings, that Craigslist is not liable for the content posted by its viewers. The court cited Section 230(c) of the Communications Decency Act, concluding that Craigslist, as an Internet classified ads service provider, is immune to civil liability for third party content. The court found Craigslist analogous to an ISP or phone service provider and thus not liable for users’ content and conduct, as opposed to, as plaintiff contended, a newspaper or magazine which may be held liable for its ads.
Bloomberg.com and Eric Goldman’s Technology & Marketing Law Blog summarize the case.








