Lawyer Mark McCormack used Facebook to serve an eviction notice on a couple - and an Australian supreme court then approved the move.
He had tried several times to contact the couple by other means, but without success.
The lawyer's client had been given permission to repossess their house in Canberra, but Australian law requires anyone losing their home to be notified.
And after more conventional means failed, the lawyer opted for Facebook.
He said: "It's somewhat novel, however we do see it as a valid method of bringing the matter to the attention of the defendant."
Australian courts have given permission in the past for people to be served via e-mail and text message when it was not possible to get to them in person.
But this is the first time Facebook, a popular online community with more than 140 million users, has been considered adequate notice.
Facebook friends can communicate in variety of ways, including sending private messages.
They can also "poke" each other - a term for giving someone a playful nudge.
In April, a lower Australian court ruled against documents being served by Facebook because the option of contacting a person via post was not exhausted.
In the latest ruling, the judge insisted that the documents must be attached to a private message sent via Facebook that could not be seen by other members
No comments:
Post a Comment