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RIAA goes judge shopping in New York

14 June 2008 3:11 by Rich "vurbal" Fiscus | 7 comments

Ray Beckerman, the attorney behind the RIAA watchdog site Recording Industry vs The People appeared to be on the verge of getting a file sharing lawsuit dismissed in federal court when the RIAA suddenly dopped the case. Initially there was a lot of speculation they feared the judge's expected decision that simply making music available by sharing via P2P doesn't infringe copyright and neither does an authorized recording industry agent downloading it. Now it looks like there was more to it than that as the suit has been re-filed with the apparent aim of getting a more favorable judge.

You see the issue isn't whether the RIAA can re-file in federal court. Since the original lawsuit was dismissed without prejudice they're within their rights to do so. What's controversial is their failure to let the courts know this was a case that had already been assigned a judge in a previous incarnation. This "oversight" allowed them to get a new judge.

In response Beckerman has told one interviewer "These people are psychos."

Regardless of their state of mental health this doesn't appear to be one of the RIAA's smarter moves. It shouldn't come as any surprise to them that Beckerman would let both judges know what's happening, which of course he has. Even assuming they got a judge who would be likely to agree with them this time, they may face an uphill battle explaining why the case should even be heard by a second judge.

Maybe somebody should explain to their lawyers that federal judges tend to be harder to intimidate than single mothers, children, or dead people. And their track record isn't so hot against any of them either.

Permalink to this article | Topics: Lawsuits & Legislation MP3 & Digital Audio

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Blackjax (Member) 14 June 2008 3:28
Well eventually their track record is going to end up like Big Brown in the derby..... coming in dead last. Keep screwing around with the bull and eventually you will get the horn. Eventually they will hurt themselves by stepping on enough consumer toes. As for the comment of "these people are pyschos" well that was spot on right and well known amongst those of us who try to stay informed. [ + quote] This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 14 June 2008 3:30
nobrainer (Inactive) 14 June 2008 3:48
you also forgot accusing photocopiers for copy-write infringement! this is just as low as you'd expect from this lot and lets all hope the judge residing thinks the same. just because the case isn't going our way, we are going to stamp our feet and scream and shout and keep going until we find a judge we've paid off. The BPI Are: SONY, UNIVERSAL, WARNER GROUP, EMI. The RIAA Soundexchange Are: SONY, UNIVERSAL, WARNER GROUP, EMI. The IFPI Are: The same anti consumer lot as listed above! The MPAA Are: SONY, UNIVERSAL, WARNER GROUP, DISNEY, PARAMOUNT, FOX. [ + quote] This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 14 June 2008 3:52
7thsinger (AfterDawn Addict) 14 June 2008 11:17
*Quote:* Maybe somebody should explain to their lawyers that federal judges tend to be harder to intimidate than single mothers, children, or dead people. And their track record isn't so hot against any of them either. So true and well said. EDIT: and don't forget laser printers. [ + quote] This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 14 June 2008 11:18
ddp (Moderator) 14 June 2008 12:19
my laser printer is innocent as i found it aslong the side of the road unless it got left behind by illegal downloaders then oh well. you know the saying, " free is free". [ + quote]
vurbal (Staff Member) 14 June 2008 12:59
*Quote:* *Quote:* Maybe somebody should explain to their lawyers that federal judges tend to be harder to intimidate than single mothers, children, or dead people. And their track record isn't so hot against any of them either. So true and well said. EDIT: and don't forget laser printers. I don't know about that. They scared the toner right out of mine. I had to vacuum up a pile of it from in front of the printer stand last week ;-) [ + quote]
Blackjax (Member) 15 June 2008 1:24
*Quote:* *Quote:* *Quote:* Maybe somebody should explain to their lawyers that federal judges tend to be harder to intimidate than single mothers, children, or dead people. And their track record isn't so hot against any of them either. So true and well said. EDIT: and don't forget laser printers. I don't know about that. They scared the toner right out of mine. I had to vacuum up a pile of it from in front of the printer stand last week ;-) And I thought mine was the only one that wasn't house broken! [ + quote]
southrb (Newbie) 19 June 2008 14:15
Is that not haw justice is bought--sorry dispensed [ + quote]