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Insert "Superpoke" Pun Here: Facebook Used to Serve Court Documents

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By Melissa Lafsky
Dec 17, 2008 12:18 AMNov 5, 2019 1:29 AM

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We're all for the continued intersection of law and technology, but this is getting a little nuts: A court in Australia has ruled that a lawyer can serve legally binding documents to a couple via Facebook. Lawyer Mark McCormack tried several times through home visits and email to serve process on a man and a woman who had defaulted on their home loan. Eventually, he looked up their profiles on Facebook, and sent them the lien notice as an attachment via the social networking site. Granted, by the time McCormack got the documents approved by the court, the couple's profiles had been removed from public view. Still, the ruling, coming out of no less than the Australian Capital Territory Supreme Court, effectively sets precedent for the practice of using Facebook as a binding legal tool. If that trend heads across the ocean, Lord help us all. Related: RB: Charged With a Crime? Better Check Your Facebook Pictures RB: Obama Would Win Easily…If the Election Were a Web Poll RB: How Down With Technology Are Each of the Candidates?

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