In response to Human Rights USA's motions to begin initial and jurisdictional discovery in our lawsuit against Yahoo (filed in April 2007), the federal district court for the Northern District of California granted our motions, rejecting Yahoo's attempts to stall or foreclose the discovery process. Keywords: yahoo, internet, china, wang xiaoning, yu ling, shi tao, atca, tvpa, discovery

After the court granted Yahoo's motion to solicit the views of the State Department on issues that may be of interest to the executive branch in Human Rights USA's lawsuit against Yahoo, the U.S. government filed notice with the court that it may potentially participate in the case. The government has indicated that it intends to submit its views after HRUSA files its response to Yahoo's motion to dismiss. Search terms: yahoo, atca, tvpa, torture, wang xiaoning, yu ling, shi tao, free speech, state department, DOS, executive branch, statement of interest, foreign affairs, china

Human Rights USA's motion to begin initial and jurisdictional discovery, in response to Yahoo's motion to dismiss the lawsuit. Yahoo alleged several factual claims in its reply brief and motion to dismiss which require much more discovery and investigation before the court may rule on them. Keywords: Yahoo, atca, tvpa, motion to dismiss, discovery, wang xiaoning, shi tao, yu ling, china

Human Rights USA's brief addressing the impropriety of requesting the State Department's views on issues raised in our lawsuit against Yahoo, which are matters properly addressed to the court, which may only be decided by the judiciary, and not the political branches. Keywords: yahoo, internet, china, wang xiaoning, yu ling, shi tao, torture, atca, tvpa, statement of interest, state department, DOS, political question, free speech, foreign affairs

Yahoo had petitioned the court to bifurcate proceedings and to delay discovery until after the court had addressed certain issues, such as jurisdiction, which required discovery. The court denied Yahoo's attempts to split up the case and delay proceedings. Yahoo had also requested that the court seek the views of the Department of State on issues that this case might address; the court granted this request. Keywords: yahoo, internet, china, wang xiaoning, yu ling, shi tao, free speech, atca, tvpa, torture

Yahoo had petitioned the court to hold early hearings on its request to bifurcate proceedings and delay discovery. HRUSA opposed Yahoo's request, arguing that moving up the date of the hearings would limit the amount of information that the court would be able to adequately and intelligently consider in deciding upon Yahoo's request. The court accepted HRUSA's position, and denied Yahoo's request to shorten the amount of time in which the court would hold hearings. Keywords: yahoo, internet, china, wang xiaoning, shi tao, yu ling, free speech, atca, tvpa, torture

HRUSA's memo in opposition to Yahoo's attempt to bifurcate the proceedings and to delay pre-trial discovery. Yahoo had asked the court to hold an early case management conference, which would have required the court to address certain issues prematurely, without all of the facts before it, and before discovery could be conducted on these issues. Keywords: Yahoo, china, internet, wang xiaoning, yu ling, shi tao, torture, atca, tvpa, free speech

HRUSA's memo opposing Yahoo's attempts to shorten the amount of time in which the court would hold hearings on Yahoo's motions. Yahoo proposed to limit the amount of time in which the court would hear its motions, requesting the court to hold hearings on its motions much sooner than originally proposed. The result of this would have been that HRUSA would have had less time in which to adequately respond to Yahoo's motions, and ultimately, the court would not be able to adequately or properly address the important issues raised in the motions. Keywords: yahoo, wang xiaoning, yu ling, shi tao, china, internet, torture, tvpa, atca

Yahoo motioned the court to bifurcate proceedings in our lawsuit against it in order to avoid addressing the merits of the case. Yahoo proposed that the court first determine whether it has jurisdiction, and then address the merits of the case. Yahoo also motioned to delay initial discovery until after the court determined whether it had jurisdiction, despite the fact that initial discovery is necessary to determine the court's jurisdiction. Yahoo also asked the court to seek the views of the State Department on certain foreign policy issues with which the government may have an interest. Keywords: discovery, yahoo, china, internet, wang xiaoning, shi tao, yu ling, free speech, atca, tvpa, torture

Court order granting parties' joint stipulated request to extend the deadlines for which Human Rights USA's amended Complaint, subsequent replies and oppositions, and other pre-trial filings and motions to be made by the parties. Keywords: yahoo, internet, wang xiaoning, yu ling, shi tao, pre-trial, complaint, free speech, atca, tvpa, torture, china

Human Rights USA's joint stipulated request to extend the initial deadlines set by the court for Yahoo's reply to HRUSA's Complaint and for the initial case management conference. Keywords: yahoo, china, internet, wang xiaoning, yu ling, shi tao, torture, tvpa, atca

Human Rights USA's current Complaint, filed against Yahoo, pending before the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. Human Rights USA filed suit against Yahoo in April of 2007 for its complicity in handing over the identifying information of internet users in China to Chinese authorities, resulting the individuals' arbitrary arrest, long-term detention, abuse, and torture. Two of the plaintiffs in the case -- well-known Chinese journalist Shi Tao, and pro-democracy advocate Wang Xiaoning -- are currently serving out 10-year prison sentences for having done nothing more than express their rights to free speech. Keywords: yahoo, china, internet, atca, tvpa, wang xiaoning, yu ling, shi tao, torture

Human Rights USA's response to a code of conduct issued by U.S. internet companies Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft, which, they claim, will better protect users in nations that restrict online free speech and privacy against government intrusion. Human Rights USA recognized the code as an important first step in acknowledging the impact that multinational internet companies can have on human rights. However, Human Rights USA noted the code's deficiencies in other respects, including its lack of guidance on how to enforce the code's principles.