Judge Dismisses $105M Blogger Suit Against Huffington Post

Unpaid bloggers had sued the Huffington Post, but a judge dismissed the class-action suit on Friday

The Huffington Post did not violate any laws by not paying bloggers who knowingly submitted their work with no intention of being paid, a U.S. district court judge ruled on Friday,

John E. Koeltel, a district court judge in New York, dismissed a class action sought brought against the Huffington Post by unpaid bloggers seeking $105 million from AOL and Arianna Huffington's media empire.

The bloggers argued that though they initially agreed to do the work for free, the Huffington Post was "unjustly enriched as a result of this practice," violating New York state law.

Koeltel disagreed.

"There is no question that the plaintiffs submitted their materials to The Huffington Post with no expectation of monetary compensation and that they got what they paid for — exposure in The Huffington Post," Koeltel wrote.

Also read: Huffington Post Contributors Go on 'Strike'

Jonathan Tasini was the primary blogger whose name became attached to the suit while defendants included AOL, Huffington and HuffPo co-founder Ken Lerer.

"This judgment removes any question about the merits of this case and we look forward to continuing the mutually beneficial relationship we share with our growing roster of interesting, dedicated and engaging bloggers," The Huffington Post said.

Bloggers were seeking a cut of the money that AOL paid to buy Huffington Post early last year.

Pamela Chelin contributed to this report.

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