Can you be sued for posting on Somersoft

[peastman]

Various people ask various questions resulting in various answers, some may not be really accurate. It may be just a lack of understanding and probably not intentional.
However, If someone takes the answer as advice and things go wrong, can the person answering the question be sued? Is there a disclaimer on the site to protect posters?

 

[Aaron_C]

However, If someone takes the answer as advice and things go wrong, can the person answering the question be sued? Is there a disclaimer on the site to protect posters?

To sue someone for negligent advice there has to be a duty of care. It is unlikely that a poster has a duty of care to a random reader since there is no relationship to begin with. So I doubt it. Defamation is a different matter though.

 

[Terry_w]

Anyone can sue anyone else for anything. Doesn't mean they will be successful though.

 

[Peter_Tersteeg]

I'm not aware of anyone every actually being sued for posting on Somersoft, but there have been a lot of examples where posts and even entire threads have been removed and the occassional public appology has been made.

My understanding is that all cases were based on negative remarks rather than bad advice. It's rarely been one contributer to another (although that does happen). It tends to start out as a specific and inocent question, which devolves into some vicious remarks about a particular business or group.

Compared to some forums I think Somersoft gets off fairly lightly, probably because our moderators do a brilliant job of keeping things reasonable and under control.

 

[RPI]

I think defamation would be an easier thing than bad advice. stlil not easy nor cheap.

 

[geoffw]

Threats have been made, but as has been said, based on negative remarks rather than bad advice. Usually there is a request to move a thread or post, which is complied with.

If adverse remarks are made about a company we may well remove the offending post before it gets to that stage. A new poster making adverse remarks naming a company raises suspicions.

Having said that, on the advice side, the nature of property probably means that we can't make recommendations as specifically as is possible on share forums. "Should I buy in xxx" is fairly broad, "should I buy 25 Anywere St Somewhere" is specific but pointless to ask. However advice to buy, say BHP, is specific, and that air of advice has raised legal problems in share trading forums.

 

[Suzy912]

There needs to be a duty of care for someone to sue for bad advice. Defamation is a different thing all together so you need to be careful about posting anything too specific about companies or people.

 

[Ausprop]

bring it on - nothing like a good court battle!

 

[redwing]

Terry maybe able to assist me, I always thought it was libel if in print form not defamation?

 

[Terry_w]

Redwing,

I know nothing of this area a law. But libel is the printed form and slander the verbal form.

But this distinction has been abolished in the defamation Act 2005 NSW (s7).