In an unusual court case a man sued 2 ex-girlfriends for posting negative comments about him on the website liarscheatersrus.com
Amanda Ryncarz’s relationship with Matthew Couloute – a handsome, successful New York attorney – went south in 2010.
She thought they’d get married someday. But then he broke up with her – over the phone.
Not two weeks had passed before Couloute was married to another woman.
A lover spurned, Ryncarz took the Internet, posting on LiarsCheatersRUs.com, which has since been taken offline. Under an anonymous name, Ryncarz called her ex a liar and a cheater who has "no long term friends" and "owns nothing."
She was simply expressing her opinion, said Attorney Gloria Allred. But Couloute said the expression lost him potential clients and sullied his name.
"They questioned my character," Couloute said in a phone interview. "They questioned my ability to practice law."
So, Couloute took the law into his own hands – suing his former flame for defamation. And he named a second ex-girlfriend, Stacy Blitsch.
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"I’m a strong believer in free speech, but you can’t go out and defame and slander people maliciously on the Internet," Couloute said.
However, a New York judge disagreed Monday, when Couloute’s lawsuit was tossed out in a move that Allred called a victory for women.
"Women should have the right to warn each other about men that they believe have lied and cheated on them," she said.
But it’s not over yet, said Couloute, who will appeal the dismissal claiming there’s a bigger issue at stake.
Do we want to live in a world where anyone – man or woman – can be called anything, as long as it’s done in the context of an online forum?
"Malicious, hurtful things that we now call opinion – and they’re able to go ahead and do it and ruin peoples’ lives," Couloute said.
Ryncarz had a different understanding of the issue. If someone posted something negative about her, she said that’s their prerogative.
So, it’s okay to drag her name through the virtual mud?
"If I lied, sure," Ryncarz said.
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