When does the statute of limitations start to run for claims based on online publications?

The majority of courts now hold that the single-publication rule applies to Internet publications, thereby establishing the first publication as the start of the statute of limitations for an online libel claim. Note, however, that allegedly defamed plaintiffs are trying to convince courts that the discovery rule, a related doctrine that tolls the statute of limitations for a defamation cause of action until the plaintiff discovers the allegedly damaging material, should apply to blogs and other online publications. The existence of millions of blogs and the inability of one person to search each site for potentially defamatory statements about that individual prevent him or her from ever learning of actionable material within the statutorily prescribed time limit for defamation, usually one or two years, according to these plaintiffs. (Remember also that the manner in which you publish online corrections and clarifications also implicates the statute of limitations and may extend the amount of time a plaintiff has to bring a cause of action based on the original writing.)

No court has ever held that the discovery rule may be applied in a defamation cause of action based on publication in a mass medium, including the Internet. However, a judge examining the issue may find that a not-generally-known, obscure blog that is difficult, if not impossible, to locate without knowledge of its existence may present an exception to this general rule. The issue is certainly one worth monitoring closely, for a judicial decision allowing a defamation plaintiff to toll the statute of limitations until he or she discovers an allegedly defamatory statement published online has serious implications for relatively unknown blogs and other Internet publications. The case that has garnered the most public attention is Wolk v. Olson, currently before the U.S. Court of Appeals in Philadelphia (3rd Cir.).