The Facebook, Inc. v. Banana Ads LLC, 2013 U.S. Dist. Lexis 65834 complaint contains trademark infringement, cybersquatting, and false designation of origin. Facebook representatives communicated with defendants in person; however, 14 were unreachable. The company requested permission from the district court to use an alternative process of service, email, to complete the work necessary for the case to proceed.
I – May Facebook select and send email notices to defendants’ websites as an alternative service of process?
R – Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 4.2 and 4.3 permit using the alternative process of service if it is reasonably calculated and reaching the defendants is in the interest of all parties. Providing that serving via email is not prohibited by international orders, and if individuals are not in the United States jurisdiction, Facebook may communicate via the selected method.
A – Unreachable defendants were foreign and domestic; the international regulations applicable to the former, and the federal law is in priority for the latter. The use of email was reasonably calculated because Facebook provided the court with confirmation of electronic address validity and proved the previous attempts to contact foreigners in person. Email service feasibility for domestic defendants was approved because they operate online; thus, reaching them via the Internet is more appropriate than traditional communication.
C – The court gave Facebook permission to use sending an email notice to the defendants as an alternative service of process. The verdict is reasonable because the company provided evidence of previous unsuccessful attempts to serve domestic and foreign individuals in person, via mail, and by telephone. Facebook operates globally, making international laws that do not prohibit email communication considerable in the given case.