Fair Use Defense Dismissed In SONY V. Tenenbaum

Several readers sent us updates from the Boston courtroom where, mere hours before the start of trial, a federal judge ruled out fair use as a defense. Wired writes that "the outcome is already shaping up to resemble the only other file sharing trial," in which the RIAA got a $1.92M judgement against Jammie Thomas-Rassert. The defendant, Joel Tenenbaum, has already essentially admitted to sharing music files, and the entire defense put together by Harvard Prof. Charles Nesson and his students turned on the question of fair use. The judge wrote that the proposed defense would be "so broad it would swallow the copyright protections that Congress has created." Jury selection is complete and opening arguments will begin tomorrow morning. Here is the Twitter feed organized by Prof. Nesson's law students.

Comments

Re:Before the arguments start?

[Hurricane78]

You mean "lawmakers" as in "hard-core criminals, trying to change the world for their profit"?

This has nothing to do with "laws" as in "rules to prevent people in a group from hurting each other, because they decided to work together".

But I wonder why they still work together then? (Rhetorical question. I know the answer.)

Re:Before the arguments start?

[Hurricane78]

You say that, as if it were unusual for the judge to be bought.

Have you missed the entire Pirate Bay trial fiasco? (Hint: The judge and the people who could throw out the judge, were bought.)

What the fuck then ?

[unity100]

didnt congress create fair use ? how can you let copyright swallow it, to prevent it fro 'swallowing' copyright ?

seems like another sold out judge to me. oh, american legal non-system.