RIAA Drops Another Case In Chicago Against Misidentified Defendant

Once again, this time in BMG v. Thao, the RIAA has dropped a case it brought against a misidentified defendant.

Lee Thao was sued in the Eastern District of Wisconsin by BMG Music and other record labels for allegedly sharing files over the Kazaa network. The RIAA based its case on information that the cable modem used to partake in file sharing was registered to Mr. Thao. However, both the ISP and the RIAA failed to recognize that Mr. Thao was not a subscriber to the ISP at the time of the alleged file-sharing, and therefore did not have possession of the suspect cable modem at that time. Daliah Saper of Saper Law Offices represented Mr. Thao and got the case dismissed after pointing out to the RIAA's attorneys that they had made another blunder in their investigations.

A similar Chicago case, Elektra v. Wilke, was previously dismissed. Mr. Wilke, too, had been represented by Ms. Saper.

Notice of Dismissal*
Fax*
Letter*

Recordingindustryvspeople

Answer, Counterclaims, and Discovery Notices Served in Elektra v. Torres

The defendant's answer, counterclaim, and discovery notices have been served in a new contested case in Brooklyn, Elektra v. Torres.

Answer and Counterclaims*
Answer and Counterclaims, Exhibit A (Amicus Brief filed by ACLU, Public Citizen, EFF, AALL, and ACLU Foundation of Oklahoma in Capitol v. Foster)*
Defendant's Initial Disclosures*
Defendant's First Set of Interrogatories to Plaintiffs*
Defendant's First Request for Production of Documents and Things*
Defendant's Notice to Take Deposition of Elektra Entertainment*

* Document published online at Internet Law & Regulation

RIAA Opposes EFF's Motion for Leave to File Amicus Brief in Lava v. Amurao, Attacks "Recording Industry vs The People"

In Lava v. Amurao, the RIAA has opposed the motion made by the Electronic Frontier Foundation for permission to file an amicus brief.

Among other things, the RIAA argued that Ray Beckerman, who had acted as local counsel in filing the EFF's motion, publishes "Recording Industry vs. The People", which, the RIAA said, had accused the Plaintiffs of acting as "a cartel of multinational corporations [that] collude to absuse our judicial system, distort copyright law, and frighten ordinary working people and their children". (Brief at Page 4, FN 1).

RIAA Memorandum of Law in Opposition to Motion by Electronic Frontier Foundation for Leave to File Amicus Curiae Brief*

George Ziemann of AzOz Music Advises College Students: Don't be a "Chump"

Interesting opinion piece on AzOz:

Before You Pay the RIAA...

By George Ziemann -- March 24, 2007

There's a reason the RIAA is offering a "discount" on this year's series of extortion demands from college students. They want to get as many chumps as possible to roll over and fork up cash and they need for you to do it right away because their window of opportunity is closing. The jig is almost up.

A couple of days ago, there were two Slashdot articles which appeared, concerning two separate cases wherein the RIAA is about to be spanked -- Deborah Foster and Patti Santangelo. If you follow the links, pay particular attention to the comments by NewYorkCountryLawyer, which is Ray Beckerman.

Foster already "won" her case in the sense that the RIAA gave up. Foster wasn't going to roll over and she was close to having a trial. Since the RIAA really had no evidence in the first place, they dismissed the case to avoid trying to convince a jury their flimsy version of reality. It was dismissed with prejudice, which means the RIAA failed to prove its case and they can't come back and accuse her of the same offense later.

The judge also ruled that the RIAA had to pay Foster's attorney's fees. When the RIAA saw the bill, they said it was too high. The judge said something to the effect of, "Oh really? How much did you spend?" To this query, the RIAA has responded by a) ignoring it for a while, b) telling the judge he made a mistake in awarding attorney fees in the first place, and c) offered their billing records as long as the court agrees they're top secret and no one can look at them.

Complete article.