Petitioner TM
obtained a modified personal protection order (PPO) against respondent MZ, prohibiting
him from posting any messages through the use of any medium of communication,
including the Internet. TM alleged that MZ had repeatedly posted disparaging
things about her on public Internet forums and in private messages to various
people. Both parties were involved in local politics, and MZ argued on appeal that
the PPO was an attempt to restrict his First Amendment rights. The Court of
Appeals dismissed the appeal as moot because the PPO had expired while the
appeal was pending and there was no indication on the record that it had been renewed
or extended. The Supreme Court has directed oral argument on respondent’s
application for leave to appeal to address whether an appeal from a PPO is
necessarily rendered moot by the fact of its expiration.