Violation of Laws of a Jurisdiction

Todd Church

Professor Saraiya

BIS 355

Week 5

Violation of Laws of a Jurisdiction

The position of the Minnesota Attorney General's office appears to be that those who venture into cyberspace must take their chances as to where they may find themselves defending a lawsuit. The official website of the state of Minnesota (located at http://www.state.mn.us) did at one stage post a "Warning to All Internet Users and Providers" issued by the Attorney General's Office stating that: (Byrnes, 2000).

Persons outside of Minnesota who transmit information via the Internet knowing that information will be disseminated in Minnesota are subject to jurisdiction in Minnesota courts for violations of state criminal and civil laws."

The Minnesota Attorney General has filed at least six lawsuits against out-of-state residents in connection with on-line activities that are allegedly harmful to Minnesota residents. The alleged activities of the various defendants include: (Byrnes, 2000).

• Allegedly false claims about the health benefits of "germanium".

• The alleged sale of information about using two-cent stamps instead of thirty-two-cent stamps to save money.

• A credit repair service that allegedly recommends the use of an Employer Identification Number (instead of a Social Security Number) when applying for credit.

• An alleged pyramid scheme.

In my opinion Minnesota is on the right track with this because if someone intends harm to another person they are just going to have to take their chances on what jurisdiction the victim happens to fall into. On the other hand gambling is legal in Nevada and not in Minnesota so why should Nevada be held responsible for a person breaking his/her own state laws.

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