DailyKos’s lawyer also tells me that he has sent a letter to the firm informing them they have a legal obligation to preserve all info relevant to the case — such as computer files holding raw polling data and phone records documenting the polling calls. “In due course, we’ll file the appropriate discovery requests to obtain the relevant information to which my clients are entitled,” DailyKos’s lawyer, Adam Bonin, tells me.

This is a big, big deal. Research 2000 polls have been widely cited by many news organizations, and have helped shape the national political conversation. Crucially, the firm has had outsized influence precisely because DailyKos commissioned and publicized their polls so extensively — a reminder of the degree to which blogs and new media can now drive the news.