Most of us have at least once or perhaps more than once Googled ourselves for some reason or the other. Out of plain curiosity or maybe for cheap thrills, it’s a common occurrence all over the world. However, one man’s Googling himself is set to prove costly for the search giant. According to a CNET report, in a long-standing battle with Google, Melbourne-based Milorad Trkujla has finally won the appeal to file a defamation suit against Google. Trukjla’s legal battle has almost everything: guns, gangsters and a commoner taking on a billion-dollar corporation.
The story goes like this: in 2004, Trkujla was shot by an unknown gunman in Melbourne. He then later Googled himself and found out that his search bought up images of mobsters, gangsters and drug traffickers. Trkujla then successfully sued Google in an Australian court and received $150,000 in damages.
The case goes to High Court
However, he didn’t let up and further filed a defamation suit. This time he alleged that Google Search’s autocomplete predictions incorrectly pushed his name and image. He said that if someone searched for Melbourne underworld criminals, it was his name and image that popped up. This time, however, Google won the case in the Victorian Court of Appeal. Clearly, Trkujla was in no mood to let go and appealed in the High Court. The High Court has now ruled that there is a case of defamation and Trkujla can sue Google, again. According to ABC, the High Court judgement reads, “There is no evidence here that it would have been apparent to an ordinary reasonable person using the Google search engine that Google made no contribution to the elements of those search results that convey a connection between Mr Trkulja and criminality.” The CNET report states that Google has made no comment on the case until now. Well, at least when Trkujla Googles himself, most search results will be about him taking Google to court and not related to gangsters and drug traffickers.