Australian Law Firm Serves Court Papers Via Facebook

Well, this is interesting, but I am not sure what it means in the long-term.

In what may be a world first, lawyers from Canberra law firm Meyer Vandenberg persuaded a judge in the Australian Capital Territory's Supreme Court to allow them to serve the documents over the internet after repeatedly failing to serve the papers in person.

Lawyer Mark McCormack came up with the Facebook plan after it became clear that the couple did not want to be found.

Carmel Rita Corbo and Gordon Poyser had failed to keep up repayments on a $150,000 (£44,000) loan they had borrowed from MKM Capital, a mortgage provider.

The pair had ignored emails from the law firm and did not attend a court appearance on Oct 3. Mr McCormack said the pair had "vanished".

So he looked to Facebook, better known for its tendency to break up marriages and ruin careers, for inspiration.

"It's somewhat novel, however we do see it as a valid method of bringing the matter to the attention of the defendant," McCormack said.

Interesting notion, but I don't think American Defendants and defense attorneys have anything to fear.

But it is an evolutionary step in legal circles. Don't be surprised though if the service gets thrown out on appeal.