News that Bronx prosecutors subpoenaed the indie political Room 8, looking to identify some of the site's anonymous commenters — and threatening legal action if the blog even mentioned that they'd been served with a subpoena — shouldn't have been entirely surprising. Because where there are blogs, there are potential lawsuits.

Actually, not just potential lawsuits. Actual lawsuits. Like this one against Perez Hilton.

As of July 1, thirty-nine states have seen their courts process some 149 personal injurity lawsuits and 11 criminal suits against bloggers. Forty-two are still spending, while 18 were resolved through pre-trial settlement.

Perhaps most noteworthy: Bloggers have been ruled against in just seven of those lawsuits; 77 percent of all civil suits were found in favor of the blogger, or the charges were dropped by the plaintiff. Further, 92 percent of blog lawsuits that go to trial end up with the blogger prevailing.

So, when it comes to Hilton's case, perhaps it'd be wisest to fight the charges, because the odds are in his favor. And: The lawsuit is pretty much bunk.

[Blogging Journalist]