Craigslist is facing a federal lawsuit for alleged “advertising” for housing that does not meet federal fair housing standards.
Craigslist is a free online bulletin board that doesn’t vet ads for the most part.
Some ads are vetted by staff when payment is involved.
The solution isn’t in suing Craigslist.
The content is provided by the person submitting the ad, not Craigslist.
The solution is suing the housing provider for breaking any federal laws that may pertain.
Craigslist should immediately make the posters agree to a statement that they are in compliance with federal fair housing standards and provide additional contact information to be posted in the ad in addition to the disclosure they already post.
In fact the disclosure should be a sufficient defense.
But in this lawsuit happy world, it just takes one slime ball to feed a dozen lawyers with other people’s money. In this case, Craigslist’s
What’s troubling is that anyone with a website can be accused of this.
Craigslist has millions in revenue to hire lawyers. Most entrepreneurs don’t.
See the Contra Costa Times
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