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EFF Jumps in Against RIAA for Copyright Misuse

Posted by Zonk on from the big-guns-call-for-bigger-guns dept.

NewYorkCountryLawyer writes "Arguing that the RIAA and big record labels may be misusing their copyrights, the Electronic Frontier Foundation has jumped in on the defendant's side in a White Plains, New York, court conflict. The case is Lava v. Amurao, and the EFF will be defending Mr. Amurao's right to counterclaim for copyright misuse. EFF argued that the RIAA, by deliberately bringing meritless cases against innocent people based on theories of 'secondary liability', are abusing their copyrights. In its amicus brief, EFF also decried (just as when it joined the ACLU, Public Citizen, and others on the side of Debbie Foster in Capitol v. Foster) the RIAA's 'driftnet' litigation strategy. They argue that the declaratory judgment remedy must also be made available to defendants, in view of the RIAA's habit of dropping the meritless cases it started but can't finish."

6 of 147 comments (clear)

  1. NewYorkCountryLawyer to the white courtesy phone by Weaselmancer · · Score: 5, Funny

    NewYorkCountryLawyer to the white courtesy phone, please. We have an RIAA related legal item that needs translation. Thank you.

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    Weaselmancer
    rediculous.
  2. Re:NewYorkCountryLawyer to the white courtesy phon by NewYorkCountryLawyer · · Score: 5, Funny

    I don't know if I can really assist. I'm a native Legalese-speaker.

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    Ray Beckerman +5 Insightful
  3. Re:Hm by UnknowingFool · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Well, they had to give the RIAA enough rope to hang themselves with first. If the RIAA did only once or twice, the RIAA could say it was a simple mistake and/or blame it on the lawyer. With many cases in many states, it establishes a pattern. They don't do their homework. They sue people without cause. They do it often.

    --
    Well, there's spam egg sausage and spam, that's not got much spam in it.
  4. Re:Hm by Ungrounded+Lightning · · Score: 5, Insightful

    If the RIAA did only once or twice, the RIAA could say it was a simple mistake and/or blame it on the lawyer. With many cases in many states, it establishes a pattern. They don't do their homework. They sue people without cause. They do it often.

    More importantly:
      - They continue to initiate new suits doing the same thing after it has been established that they're doing things wrong, and
      - they admitted in public that they knew they were hurting innocents and that they considered this collateral damage legitimate.

    I suspect that these were the last two ducklings that had to fall in line. Once they were in position the EFF could fire their shot the next time a case got to the stage that exposed the target.

    Danger danger, Will Robinson! Mixed metaphors off the starboard bow!

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    Bantam Dominique roosters crow a four-note song. Once you've heard it as "Happy BIRTHday" you can't NOT hear it that way
  5. Re:NewYorkCountryLawyer to the white courtesy phon by PhxBlue · · Score: 5, Funny

    We have an RIAA related legal item that needs translation.

    ... Does anyone speak jive?

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    !#@%*)anks for hanging up the phone, dear.
  6. Re:Hm by Matt+Perry · · Score: 5, Funny

    I suspect that these were the last two ducklings that had to fall in line. Once they were in position the EFF could fire their shot the next time a case got to the stage that exposed the target.
    If we can hit that bulls-eye, the rest of the dominoes will fall like a house of cards. Checkmate! [1]
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    Slashdot: Failed Car Analogies. Amateur Lawyering. Anecdote Battles.