Dr Janice Duffy, who sued Google and won, says tech giant is encouraging harassment of witnesses in new case

She beat Google in 2015, but Dr Janice Duffy is still fighting the tech giant in court – now she has accused it of encouraging the harassment of her key witnesses.

Dr Janice Duffy has accused Google of encouraging the harassment of witnesses in her case against it. Picture: Matt Turner.

Google has “enabled and encouraged” the harassment of witnesses in an attempt to “destroy” them ahead of a defamation lawsuit, court documents allege.

Dr Janice Duffy, who sued the internet giant and won five years ago, has asked the Supreme Court to protect witnesses in her new case from “retribution”.

In a sworn affidavit obtained by The Advertiser, she accuses Google of making confidential documents in the case “available for the world to access”.

That has, she asserts, exposed both herself and her witnesses to rape threats, false accusations of criminal activity and stalkers who have pursued them both online and in person.

“All of my witnesses are now terrified of giving evidence without protection from the court because Google has the power to destroy their lives and livelihoods,” she says.

“Violence and threats against anyone is not acceptable, but I was under the impression that attempts to intimidate plaintiffs and their witnesses is against the law.

“These are not wild and fanciful accusations … I have no choice but to seek the protection of the court for my witnesses.

In 2015, the Supreme Court found Google had defamed Dr Duffy due to the way its patented algorithm auto-completed search terms.

It ruled the company had failed to remove links to harmful, vicious accusations made against her by the members of a “shaming” website, despite her repeated requests it do so.

Google was ordered to pay the former SA Health researcher – who represented herself at trial – $115,000 in damages.

Dr Duffy following her original Supreme Court victory over Google.

Less than a year later, Dr Duffy filed a second lawsuit because, she asserted, Google had still not removed the links even after the ruling – that case is ongoing.

In her 95-page affidavit, Dr Duffy alleges Google published confidential information from her cases on employee blogs and through independent websites supportive of the company.

She says that led to internet users falsely accusing one of her witnesses of poisoning his wife, who had actually died from cancer.

Another witnesses, she says, is “terrified of retribution” were she to give evidence.

“She has an unusual name and even one hint of scandal on the internet would result in her losing her job,” she says.

“Google has all the power … it can destroy a life, a reputation and a livelihood with one publication on a high-ranking website.”

Dr Duffy says her residential address was “made accessible by Google”, leaving her “reduced to living in fear in my own home” due to “a year and a half of harassment”.

She says she has suffered escalating threats of violence and repeated phone calls from an Adelaide man who has been following her cases.

“I should not have to live in fear or be deprived of my rights by a powerful corporation,” she says.

“Neither I nor my witnesses should be forced to endure harassment because Google exercises its dominant power over plaintiffs (and) the witnesses that support them.”

The case returns to court on Thursday.

Originally published as Dr Janice Duffy, who sued Google and won, says tech giant is encouraging harassment of witnesses in new case