Last Friday (21st), Google filed an appeal against a 2020 decision that required him to pay US$ 40 million Remove an article deemed defamatory by a lawyer. The company stated that compliance with that decision would result in a “censorship” by Internet.
The controversy began in 2016, when attorney George Defteros asked Google to remove a 2004 article in The Age newspaper – which is still in print. Available, The article claimed that Defteros was accused of being involved in a series of murders Held in Melbourne, Australia.
Google argued in the appeal that it could not be as responsible as the publisher of The Age.Source: Breeding: Nathana Reboucas/Unsplash
However, what actually happened was that the lawyer was representing the clients involved in the crime. Charges against George Deferos was withdrawn in 2005, but the article remained on the website and in the Google engine. This was when the lawyer filed the suit six years ago.
In appeal, Google argues that it cannot be as responsible as Editors do Journal The Age, who effectively published an article considered defamatory. According to the company, “the research results alone do not imply a defamatory allegation to the author”.
