Paper thin forum AUP's & forum owners obligations

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My partner has just come back from a solicitors, she has been given the number to a legal firm that deals with civil law and specialise in a couple of areas.

It seems that "Bullying" and "Intimidation" and other forms of manipulation including threats and encouraging people to gang up as well as slanderous remarks are illegal in anycase and...
a) the forum board owners are liable to prosecution
b) banning of people on forum boards is deemed as discrimination agains an individual and can be punishable by a fine.
c) failure to adhear to the law can lead to compensation being awarded, the board owners and culprits being sent to prison for continued humiliation.

So if the person being banned is the forum bully, etc then they can be banned in acordance with the law, if they dont, then the board owners are liable to a trip to prison.

If the person has bent the forum rules, banning them is discrimination.

If the person is banned without reason, its discrimination.

I was needless to say surprised when my partner told me, finally we can do something about the w*****s on a forum board that have abused my partners good name and character for nearly 4 years.

So if they then ban her because of a letter from her solicitors, she has then squarely got them for discrimiation.

Basically the forum board owners under the current laws should have stomped on this little ring of individuals so they have broken the law and they could face a fine plus compensation for all the activitys and animosity towards my partner. She believes that the individuals are nothing to do with the forum owner..oO(in my mind the ringleaders are the board owners)

Its amazing what you learn in daily life and legal stuff. So beware next person you ban on your forum!

[Stephen Philbin]

Well law is not universal. I'll reserve making, what in this case would probably be self-fulfilling, observations and point out that an AUP is supplemental to many other factors and should not be taken as an authoritative legal position. Your partner might also do well to remember that the judge of a proper court may well not take the same stance as any cash-hungry legal advisor you might paying to say things you might like to hear.

I know that plenty of courts behave in quite absurd ways: often more like a circus that just makes up the rules as they proceed with a sprinkling of theatrics and melodrama for good measure, but in the U.K. we have some pretty simple and sensible rights that would have such cases laughed out of the legal arena.

First and foremost is the right for a service provider to refuse service to anyone they wish at their own discretion. Additionally slander would be a very difficult one to make stick given that pretty much anyone is free to use any pseudonym they like whilst on the internet. Even if you could prove slander against "Bunnykins74612" that's not to say you have proven slander against any actual person. You could prove someone might be slandering the name of "Bunnykins74612", but so what if you do?