CPA Googles For His Name, Sues Google For Libel 619

Posted by timothy on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:05PM from the sue-you-sue-anyone dept.

fbform writes "Mark Maughan, an accountant, searched Google for his name on March 25 2003 and found some 'alarming, false, misleading and injurious' information about himself and his firm. Therefore, he is now suing Google, Yahoo (which used Google as its search engine at the time), AOL (for using Google to enhance its search results) and Time Warner (because they're the same company as AOL) for libel. Specifically, his lawyer John Girardi believes that Google's PageRank algorithm takes known good information and twists its context when displaying search results."

CPA Googles For His Name, Sues Google For Libel

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In related news... (Score:5, Funny)

by gregwbrooks ( 512319 ) * writes: <gregb@west-th[ ].net ['ird' in gap]> on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:05PM (#8624349)

Googling for "litigious schmuck" now turns up a new entry...

This begs the question... (Score:5, Funny)

by Spytap ( 143526 ) writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:07PM (#8624357)

...how much of it was true? ;)

Let him sue Slashdot next (Score:5, Funny)

by Anonymous Coward writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:07PM (#8624362)

Hey everybody, I heard that Mark Maughan once killed a man in Reno just to watch him die!

He also has poor math skills and failed basic algebra twice.

Next thing he'll sue them for .... (Score:5, Funny)

by billstewart ( 78916 ) writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:08PM (#8624365) Journal

... is censorship, because if they delete him from Google nobody can find him.

You forgot Slashdot... (Score:2, Funny)

by holzp ( 87423 ) writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:08PM (#8624373)

if his lawyer browses this at -1.

In other news (Score:3, Funny)

by gbrayut ( 715117 ) writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:09PM (#8624376) Homepage

Man sues white pages for listing his name and phone number. WTF!

next up for SCO... (Score:1, Funny)

by Anonymous Coward writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:09PM (#8624385)

Suing Slashdot for the negative press on Darl McBride...

Comment removed (Score:5, Funny)

by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) * writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:11PM (#8624400)

Comment removed based on user account deletion

did you? (Score:1, Funny)

by Anonymous Coward writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:12PM (#8624411)

How many people searched for their names in google after reading this article?

Good idea... (Score:4, Funny)

by eniu!uine ( 317250 ) writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:19PM (#8624457)

"I think it should be manditory for people to know how things work before they can sue someone."

Does this mean no one will be able to sue me if I write destructive code in perl?

one, two (Score:1, Funny)

by Anonymous Coward writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:20PM (#8624472)

HAHAHAHAAHAHHAHAHA

*catches breathe*

HAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Poor Mr. Maughan (Score:3, Funny)

by Baldorg ( 758327 ) writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:20PM (#8624474)

People will now find out the horrible things he does to animals during his free time...

Kill the messenger. (Score:2, Funny)

by sittingbull ( 526322 ) writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:24PM (#8624512)

Oh ya, kill the messenger (Google) after he dies of a heart attack to bring you the best information possible; that always works.

Congratulations! (Score:3, Funny)

by Anonymous Coward writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:26PM (#8624531)

You are the prize winner of being the first schmuck to post the "begs-the-question" pedanticry to slashdot!
Yes, while countless millions go on with their lives being perfectly able to make the distinction between "circular argument" and "leading question", you are there in the forefront making sure that an insignificant badly worded phrase coined centuries ago shall continue to wreak confusion for years to come! Well done! Carry on!
You know, your anal retentive obsession about "begs the question" really begs the question, do you really understand basic English? This is the question that I am begging.
And gosh, did you know that I B.A'd in Logic? Fat lot of good that did me with guys like you around telling me how to speak.

Meanwhile... (Score:5, Funny)

by Thedalek ( 473015 ) writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:28PM (#8624544)

Googling for my name [google.com] reveals that, in addition to being an avid gamer, I apparantly played Greedo in Star Wars.

Think I'll sue Lucas for not paying me.

Re:In related news... (Score:4, Funny)

by c1ay ( 703047 ) writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:30PM (#8624566) Homepage

Does Utah allow gay marriage? I think Mr. Maughan and Darl would make a happy couple, and as litigious schmucks they'd probably avoid divorce. Anyone got Mark Maughan's email address?

obMicrosoft-conspiracy-theory (Score:2, Funny)

by diamond0 ( 456988 ) * writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:32PM (#8624588)

suppose Microsoft funded this guy too?

Re:Isn't page rank dead? (Score:5, Funny)

by DRUNK_BEAR ( 645868 ) writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:33PM (#8624589)

You mean this [google.com] technology I presume...

Re:He knows he's not going to win. (Score:3, Funny)

by Trespass ( 225077 ) writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:35PM (#8624605) Homepage

Yeah, but another computer illiterate boob might. Look at how many there are.

Re:In related news... (Score:5, Funny)

by dtfinch ( 661405 ) * writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:35PM (#8624608) Journal

bastards [google.com]

When google gives wrong info me (Score:5, Funny)

by randomwalker ( 758064 ) writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:40PM (#8624637)

When google gives wrong info on me(other people have same name), i just add their stuff to my resume.
I gained a dance school and a few civil war books in my resume experiences.

It's only right... (Score:5, Funny)

by SmackCrackandPot ( 641205 ) writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:41PM (#8624641)

It's only right that Google should validate the truth of every one of the six billion pages indexed by their system. After all, eager minds want to know:

Who really killed JFK, did Tammy really make out with Nick at the end of the high school prom, and whether UFO's, the Lock Ness Monster, bigfoot, black triangles and the chucacubra really exist or not. This could save so much effort and time wasted on speculation and controversy.

Re:Oh the horror, oh the tragedy!!!! (Score:5, Funny)

by KillerHamster ( 645942 ) writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:42PM (#8624647) Homepage

Or accountants, for that matter.

Mirrors? (Score:1, Funny)

by nadolph ( 661727 ) writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @10:55PM (#8624712) Homepage

I am waiting for someone to sue a mirror manufacturer for showing them thier ugly face.

My mis-reading of headline (Score:2, Funny)

by spook brat ( 300775 ) writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @11:06PM (#8624751)

When I saw the headline I immediately thought, "why is the Coalition Provisional Authority suing anyone? I didn't think they had time or money for that..."

Boy do I need to get out of Baghdad...

Re:Let him sue Slashdot next (Score:5, Funny)

by davisk ( 664811 ) writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @11:20PM (#8624820)

I once saw Mark Maughan scissor kick Angela Lansbury!

oh no... big ol' mean google picking on you (Score:2, Funny)

by im_not_jose ( 701485 ) writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @11:21PM (#8624827) Homepage

awwww.... boohoo poor old Mark Maughan. big ol' mean nasty google has narrowed down billions of people in this whole world just to put a few nasty search results under his name. shall we give him a group hug? i wonder if this is just another microsoft-backed conspiracy or if he's just an immature idiot... or perhaps even both. who knows? maybe he will try to sue slashdot next, because if you run his name under its search engine, a few nasty (and true) things may pop up. and the world goes kersplash.

Re:In related news... (Score:5, Funny)

by AndroidCat ( 229562 ) writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @11:49PM (#8624995) Homepage

Here's some more alarming news for him: His computer is broadcasting an IP address! He should probably sue the Internet.

Re:In related news... (Score:3, Funny)

by Repton ( 60818 ) writes: on Saturday March 20, 2004 @11:59PM (#8625035) Homepage

Funniest thing about that search [google.com] --- underneath the GWB link is a Jimmy Carter link. Both are accompanied by a Google directory link.

Jimmy Carter is under

Society --> History

George W. Bush is under

Kids and Teens --> School Time

:-)

I'm suing a well-known geek website... (Score:2, Funny)

by Anonymous Coward writes: on Sunday March 21, 2004 @12:12AM (#8625114)

...for disparaging my character by claiming a total lack of bravery. If there are any others out there like me, we might be able to form a class action.

Re:how about suing the site with the actual conten (Score:1, Funny)

by Anonymous Coward writes: on Sunday March 21, 2004 @12:19AM (#8625146)

I hope this will teach people not to associate Mark Maughan [ca.gov] with that page.

Re:This begs the question... (Score:3, Funny)

by ScrewMaster ( 602015 ) writes: on Sunday March 21, 2004 @12:59AM (#8625329)

Actually, in the U.S. you can always sue. It's one of our rights as Americans. We can sue anybody for anything, any time, without provocation, reason or justification. Now, that doesn't mean we have the slightest chance of winning (or even avoiding having our case thrown out by a smart judge) but we can always sue.

Re:Anger.... Rising... (Score:4, Funny)

by ScrewMaster ( 602015 ) writes: on Sunday March 21, 2004 @01:01AM (#8625345)

OK, so my plan isn't perfect. Can anyone suggest anything better?

Tactical thermonuclear device.

You know... (Score:4, Funny)

by Guppy06 ( 410832 ) writes: on Sunday March 21, 2004 @01:08AM (#8625382)

If he was any good at what he did, he wouldn't need to sue Google for money.

Re:In related news... (Score:3, Funny)

by JonnyRo88 ( 639703 ) writes: on Sunday March 21, 2004 @01:23AM (#8625469) Homepage Journal

How in the world did you find this one. It's freaking awesome.

Slashdot Men of Genius... (Score:5, Funny)

by Magus311X ( 5823 ) writes: on Sunday March 21, 2004 @01:26AM (#8625483)

I think it's about time Slashdot had something along this line:
----- -----

Slashdot Men of Genius...
Today we salute you, mister "begs-the-question".
Mister begs-the-question!
While millions can understand a basic phrase, you take the lead in misinterpreting everything.
Cannot make a distinction!
Your lack of logic ensures that phrases coined centuries ago will continue to wreak confusion for years come.
A leader in confusion!
You know, your anal retentive obsession about "begs the question" really begs the question, do you really understand basic English?
This is the question I'm beggin'!
And gosh, did you know that I B.A'd in Logic? Fat lot of good that did me with guys like you around telling me how to speak.
Slashdot Men of Genius

----- -----

Re:Slashdot Men of Genius... (Score:5, Funny)

by markhb ( 11721 ) writes: on Sunday March 21, 2004 @01:41AM (#8625547) Journal

You need an ending:

So here's to you, Mister Begs-the-Question, and here's to that Strunk & White you have jammed up your ass.

Yeah, well... (Score:3, Funny)

by Guppy06 ( 410832 ) writes: on Sunday March 21, 2004 @01:49AM (#8625587)

He's sick. My best friend's sister's boyfriend's brother's girlfriend heard from this guy who knows this kid who's going with a girl who saw Mark Maughan pass out at 31 Flavors last night. I guess it's pretty serious.

Well? (Score:3, Funny)

by Guppy06 ( 410832 ) writes: on Sunday March 21, 2004 @01:52AM (#8625599)

Did you shoot first or didn't you?

Re:In related news... (Score:3, Funny)

by Ark42 ( 522144 ) writes: <slashdot@@@morpheussoftware...net> on Sunday March 21, 2004 @02:20AM (#8625702) Homepage

Wow. How did that happen?

Here's the lucky link:
http://www.google.com/search?q=bastards&btnI=I%27m +Feeling+Lucky [google.com]

Re:Congratulations! (Score:3, Funny)

by Anonymous Coward writes: on Sunday March 21, 2004 @02:38AM (#8625762)

"
You are the prize winner of being the first schmuck to post the "begs-the-question" pedanticry to slashdot!"

The word is "pedantry [reference.com]."

Re:In related news... (Score:4, Funny)

by Alex Belits ( 437 ) * writes: on Sunday March 21, 2004 @02:56AM (#8625828) Homepage

"Darl is not acting in a manner befitting a moron"?

I strongly disagree.

Re:Let him sue Slashdot next (Score:1, Funny)

by Anonymous Coward writes: on Sunday March 21, 2004 @03:45AM (#8625976)

And I heard Micheal Jackson, the pop star, can't have an orgasm unless he molests a boy! Just something I heard.

I Googled My Name (Score:2, Funny)

by DietVanillaPepsi ( 763129 ) writes: on Sunday March 21, 2004 @03:58AM (#8626057)

Apparently, I'm a slut [voy.com].

The folks at General Hospital will be hearing from my attorney.

More basis for lawsuits? (Score:2, Funny)

by emilng ( 641557 ) writes: on Sunday March 21, 2004 @04:27AM (#8626144)

How about...

mark_maughan.isgay.com [isgay.com]

or

darl.isgay.com [isgay.com] site.

Re:In related news... (Score:2, Funny)

by netsharc ( 195805 ) writes: on Sunday March 21, 2004 @05:18AM (#8626264)

Yes, even the morons don't want to be classified as the same with him. :)

Alas, I've been modded a troll, oh well, Slashdot a place where you have to explicitly mention to the readers "It's a joke, son."

There may be more comments in this discussion. Without JavaScript enabled, you might want to turn on Classic Discussion System in your preferences instead.

In related news... (Score:5, Funny)

This begs the question... (Score:5, Funny)

Let him sue Slashdot next (Score:5, Funny)

Next thing he'll sue them for .... (Score:5, Funny)

You forgot Slashdot... (Score:2, Funny)

In other news (Score:3, Funny)

next up for SCO... (Score:1, Funny)

Comment removed (Score:5, Funny)

did you? (Score:1, Funny)

Good idea... (Score:4, Funny)

one, two (Score:1, Funny)

Poor Mr. Maughan (Score:3, Funny)

Kill the messenger. (Score:2, Funny)

Congratulations! (Score:3, Funny)

Meanwhile... (Score:5, Funny)

Re:In related news... (Score:4, Funny)

obMicrosoft-conspiracy-theory (Score:2, Funny)

Re:Isn't page rank dead? (Score:5, Funny)

Re:He knows he's not going to win. (Score:3, Funny)

Re:In related news... (Score:5, Funny)

When google gives wrong info me (Score:5, Funny)

It's only right... (Score:5, Funny)

Re:Oh the horror, oh the tragedy!!!! (Score:5, Funny)

Mirrors? (Score:1, Funny)

My mis-reading of headline (Score:2, Funny)

Re:Let him sue Slashdot next (Score:5, Funny)

oh no... big ol' mean google picking on you (Score:2, Funny)

Re:In related news... (Score:5, Funny)

Re:In related news... (Score:3, Funny)

I'm suing a well-known geek website... (Score:2, Funny)

Re:how about suing the site with the actual conten (Score:1, Funny)

Re:This begs the question... (Score:3, Funny)

Re:Anger.... Rising... (Score:4, Funny)

You know... (Score:4, Funny)

Re:In related news... (Score:3, Funny)

Slashdot Men of Genius... (Score:5, Funny)

Re:Slashdot Men of Genius... (Score:5, Funny)

Yeah, well... (Score:3, Funny)

Well? (Score:3, Funny)

Re:In related news... (Score:3, Funny)

Re:Congratulations! (Score:3, Funny)

Re:In related news... (Score:4, Funny)

Re:Let him sue Slashdot next (Score:1, Funny)

I Googled My Name (Score:2, Funny)

More basis for lawsuits? (Score:2, Funny)

Re:In related news... (Score:2, Funny)

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