Facebook Group Lawsuit Dismissed: “Are We Seeing the Same Man?”

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An Illinois federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit against the "Are We Dating the Same Guy?" Chicago Facebook group and dozens of individuals. Private Facebook groups like "Are We Dating the Same Guy?" aim to help (typically heterosexual) women avoid men who exhibit undesirable behavior such as lying or ghosting. In certain instances, multiple women in the group are dating the same man they encountered on dating apps — hence the group name. 

Last year, Chicago man Nikko D'Ambrosio sued Meta, along with women who dated him, their parents, women who commented on posts about him in the Facebook group, and the group moderators for defamation, invasion of privacy, doxxing, and more. On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Sunil R. Harjani dismissed the complaint. Harjani indicated that D'Ambrosio failed to allege any false statements, and none of the statements made would fit the per se defamation category (that the women's words were inherently damaging). Moreover, he did not allege that his photo was used for commercial purposes, which was necessary under his assertion that the group violated the Illinois Right of Publicity Act.

Defendants Spill The Tea, Inc. (the owner and operator of the Facebook group) also clarified that even if the women's statements were considered defamatory, they were not actionable as opinions. D'Ambrosio had multiple opportunities to address these issues, but Harjani noted that he did not. The Court also reviewed the statements D'Ambrosio provided regarding his actions while dating in Chicago and determined they were not defamatory. 

"While it is clear from his complaint that D'Ambrosio objects to the notion that women in Chicago, and nationally, have a private invite-only forum in which they can discuss and potentially warn other women about men's dating habits, and that he personally disliked being mentioned in that group, the statements made about him do not rise to the level of defamation, false light invasion of privacy, or doxxing," Harjani wrote. "The comments about D'Ambrosio in 'Are We Dating the Same Guy?' were subjective opinions, which, even if D'Ambrosio finds them unfavorable, cannot be classified as defamation."