RIAA Gives Up In Atlantic Recording v. Brennan

NewYorkCountryLawyer writes "In Atlantic Recording v. Brennan, the landmark Connecticut case in which the first decision rejecting the RIAA's 'making available' theory was handed down, the RIAA has finally thrown in the towel and dismissed its own case. Mr. Brennan never appeared in the case at all. In February, 2008, the RIAA's motion for a default judgment was rejected for a number of reasons, including the Court's ruling (PDF) that there is no claim for 'making available for distribution' under the US Copyright Act. The RIAA moved for reconsideration; that motion was denied. Then, in December, the RIAA's second motion for default judgment was rejected. Finally the RIAA filed a 'notice of dismissal' ending the case."

Comments

Re:With/Without Prejudice

[NewYorkCountryLawyer]

I think the issue now is whether the RIAA can dismiss the case at this point without prejudice.

Under the Federal Rules, a second voluntary dismissal operates as an adjudication on the merits. This is the second case against Mr. Brennan, the first being the case in which they sued him as a John Doe, obtained a subpoena, learned his name and address, and then dismissed. So it would appear to me that this is 'with prejudice' even though they have labeled it 'without prejudice'. In any event, I don't think they're going to mess with Judge Janet Bond Atherton again, any time soon.

Re:Not the end by a longshot

[NewYorkCountryLawyer]

The indies are far more honest and reasonable; they give the music away on websites and via P2P, using the music itself as a reason for you to buy other things (CDs, t-shirts, etc).

Indies also sell their music, and anyone who professes to hate the RIAA should be sure to buy music from indie performers.

Re:Not the end by a longshot

[NewYorkCountryLawyer]

I believe it's ... illegal in the U.S. for a lawyer to refuse a case based on their personal opinions one way or the other

You are 100% incorrect.