Court makes wrong ruling on Craiglist housing ad bias liability - but hope rises anew

Although Craigslist steals a boatload of ads from traditional newspapers and even more from alt-weeklies, a federal appeals judge said it doesn’t have the same legal burden as them to make sure its classified ads for housing aren’t discriminatory.

The lawsuit, filed by a consortium of Chicago attorneys in February 2006, accused Craigslist of violating federal housing laws by publishing more than 100 ads that excluded potential buyers or tenants on the basis of race, gender or religion.

I strongly hope this is pursued to the Supreme Court and overturned. And, the Chicago lawyers who started the legal action say they’re not giving up yet on rooting out discriminatory housing lenders and sellers.

But, that’s a toughie.

The decision upholds a November 2006 ruling by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division. In dismissing the case, U.S. District Judge Amy St. Eve ruled that Craigslist serves as an intermediary party, not a publisher.

And, that’s why it’s a toughie. You have both a district judge and an appellate judge unwilling to tackle new media issues. And, you know SCOTUS, should it even take such an appeal, isn’t going to be any better.

So, unless those Chicago lawyers find grounds to appeal this particular ruling, this gives Craigslist a hugely unfair legal advantage over traditional newspapers.

Update, April 4: Those Chicago lawyers may just have their grounds for appeal.

Out in San Francisco, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled Roomates.com cannot require users to disclose their sexual orientation. Sounds like an awfully similar case to me; this is headed to SCOTUS, I do believe.