can a lawyer simply ask about the address of a server owner?
 

to a server provider and will the server provider give it to the lawyer?

or would it need a court order for that information?


Lets say someone wants to directly sue the website owner, and wants the address listed in the server contact information, wil the server provider give up that information?

With court?

Let's say without court order

and also who is primarily liable for a website

the domain owner or the website host?

Who take responsibility for drunk driving? guy in car, car company or guy from off-licence store?

A US lawyer can issue a subpoena, without a judge's signature, for documentary evidence or testimony as part of discovery in most civil cases -- if that is your question.

https://www.google.com/search?q=lawy...sue+a+subpoena

A lawyer is an officer of the court that he is admitted to practice in.
You can refuse the subpoena, appear in that court it is issued in and motion the court to quash that subpoena on your argument's grounds.

Websites are liable for their content under the safe harbor that an ISP or OSP (online service provider) has in most cases.

You host will roll over on you if it secures his safe harbor in the action. Throwing you under the bus to save his business' liability is obliviously in his best interest.

I have been subpoenaed before in a matter related to my construction business I owned in the past by a Plaintiff's Attorney as I recall.

*not offered as legal advice -- offered in topical conversation.

when on a bullet proof host you will be screwed

Like Barry said, website owners are liable for their content.

Ask your lawyer :1orglaugh

I signed up with the host a theif was using. Then I called tech support and said I wanted to combine my two accounts and update the old contact info to my new account, except the email address. He confirmed the theifs contact info, I said yep and I had his contact data :thumbsup

It depends on what you call "their content". For instance, Section 230 of the communication decency Act is supposed to protect website owners from liability for content uploaded to their website by their users, though courts seem hell bent on removing those protections. If websites were responsible for content uploaded by end users sites like Facebook and Reddit couldn't exist because they'd be held liable for anything and everything that their users shared. Website owners have a responsibility to remove items in accordance with DMCA, but so long as they are not the ones uploading said content, and follow the DMCA safe harbor laws they should theoretically be protected.

It depends on the Host. You'd have to read their TOS. For instance, I am using MoJo Host, their TOS clearly state that they would only had over such information if they get a Subpoena. Other hosts might just hand it out to any one who represents themselves as being a lawyer.