Hulk Hogan’s battle in court against the popular news website Gawker over a published sex tape was set to begin Monday, as case that could have repercussions for expectations of privacy in the online age.
The former professional wrestler is seeking $100 million in damages from Gawker, claiming his privacy rights were violated after the website published a secretly recorded tape of him in bed with the former wife of his then-best friend, radio shock jock Bubba the Love Sponge, Reuters reports.
Opening statements were scheduled to start in a St. Petersburg, Fla. courtroom, where a six-member jury was seated in the civil trial that could last three weeks, according to the Associated Press. Gawker has said that its 2012 post is protected free speech under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
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