Ford Motor Co. v. Lane

67 F. Supp. 2d 745 (1999)

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Ford Motor Co. v. Lane

United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan
67 F. Supp. 2d 745 (1999)

RW

Facts

Robert Lane (defendant) maintained a website devoted to all things related to Ford Motor Company (Ford) (plaintiff) and its products. Relations between Lane and Ford began deteriorating after Lane encouraged Ford’s employees to leak company information to him. Matters grew worse when Lane’s website posted embarrassing leaked documents revealing Ford’s engine and emission problems. Although this information was of interest to the public, Lane also threatened to post leaked Ford trade secrets. This information would hold little interest for the public but enormous interest and value for Ford’s competitors. Ford sued in federal district court and obtained a temporary restraining order (TRO) against Lane. Ford moved to reenter the TRO as a preliminary injunction barring Lane from (1) infringing Ford’s copyrights, (2) improperly interfering between Ford and its employees, and (3) further disclosing internal Ford documents on Lane’s website. Lane objected to the third condition as a prior restraint on freedom of the press in violation of the federal Constitution’s First Amendment.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Edmunds, J.)

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