Ruling recently in a dispute between car insurance firm PennWarranty Corp. and disgruntled ex-customer Ronald DiGiovanni, Justice Judith Gische stated that the site established by Mr DiGiovanni to air his grievances represented protected free speech.

According to reports in the US legal media, the dispute between the two parties began when Penn Warranty denied a claim filed by Mr DiGiovanni, who subsequently brought a breach of contract claim against the firm.

The case was settled for $2,500. However, the defendant then created a - now defunct - website entitled www.pennwarranty litigation.com, on which he accused the insurer of being "blatently dishonest", and suggested that it had been "ripping off its contract holders for quite a while".

Penn Warranty claimed in the New York County Supreme Court that Mr DiGiovanni had defamed it, and that his claims were libellous.

However, Justice Gische argued that the context of the remarks showed that he was a disgruntled former customer, and that the opinions expressed were merely his own, based on his personal experience with the company.

"The statements are subjective expressions of consumer dissatisfaction with the plaintiff and the statements are not actionable because they are the defendant's personal opinion," she concluded.