In an amici curiae brief filed with the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis, the Internet group said a Minnesota court ruling requiring police officers to be physically present for search warrants would threaten client privacy, slow the searches and disrupt business.

"A large Internet service provider can receive literally thousands of search warrants and other requests for information during the course of a year," the brief said.

If the Minnesota ruling is allowed to stand, "it is entirely possible that at any given time a dozen or more law enforcement officers would be on the premises of a given service provider," it said.

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