Geohot Lawsuit Delayed as Judge Questions Whether Case Should be Held in California

The Sony lawsuit against hacker George “Geohot” Hotz has been delayed after a California judge declined to rule on the case due to Hotz being from New Jersey, not California.

Sony filed in the state because the hack was revealed using Twitter and YouTube, services based in California, its lawyers claimed.

PayPal, similarly located in California, was also used to donate money to Hotz, Sony said. Hotz, 21, denies receiving any donations.

If the court could rule on cases based on the location of the online services used, “that would mean the entire universe is subject to my jurisdiction,” said U.S. District Judge Susan Illsto, ”and that’s a really hard concept for me to accept.”

The Judge made no decision on the merits of Sony’s case and wondered whether the case should be tried in New Jersey instead. Sony argued that cases relating to the PlayStation’s terms of service must be carried out near to where Sony is based.

The Judge said that “serious questions have been raised here” and that she would rule at an undisclosed time.