If you thought unwanted friend requests were irritating, imagine logging into Facebook to find a poke from a lawyer that’s accompanied by a summons to appear in court.

Last Friday, the Australian Capital Territory Supreme Court approved lawyer Mark McCormack’s request to use Facebook to serve a summons to Gordon Poyser and Carmel Corbo, a couple who had defaulted on their home loan and ignored numerous attempts to contact them in person and via e-mail.

Welcome to Web 2.0 where you can no longer hide from law enforcement—or anyone ever.

IBN Live reports:

"It's somewhat novel, however, we do see it as a valid method of bringing the matter to the attention of the defendant," McCormack said.

Despite the setback, McCormack said the Facebook attempt would help his client's case that all reasonable steps had been taken to serve the couple. A court is expected to settle the matter as early as next week.

Of course, Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s 24-year-old founder who never misses an opportunity to bask in his own greatness, praised the court’s decision, because it “validate[d] Facebook as a reliable, secure and private medium for communication.”

For once, I agree with Zuckerberg, but only because when it comes time to serve him a legal summons, I hope he receives it through his own Facebook profile.

Ah, sweet justice.