Google Reviewer Identity Subject to Discovery by Japanese Doctor

A Japanese doctor and his ophthalmology clinic can query Google LLC for the name of an anonymous reviewer who gave them a one-star rating, a federal court in California said.

Naoki Toriyama and Uchihara Toriyama Eyeclinic satisfied the requirements of a law that allows federal courts to authorize discovery in the US for information to be used in foreign courts, the US District Court for the Northern District of California said.

Google is located within the court’s geographical boundaries, the information is intended to be used in a forthcoming lawsuit, and Toriyama is an “interested” person for purposes of the ...