Certainly, copyright infringement is a legitimate basis for suit, and if many people engage in copyright infringement, many people may be sued. But the general safeguards developed by federal courts to ensure that defendants get a fair chance to present their defenses always apply.
The past year has seen the emergence of a new litigation strategy in federal district courts: mass copyright cases joining together hundreds and often thousands of Doe defendants at once. These cases involve significant and substantive ex parte activity before the individual defendants are even aware of the litigation, much less in a position to respond.
The cases generally follow the same path. A complaint is filed against unnamed John Does involving a single claim of copyright infringement over copyrighted work(s). The cases are brought in the jurisdiction where the plaintiffs attorney is located. The copyrighted works are independent or pornographic films. One title, for instance, is Nude Nuns with Big Guns; others have titles even less safe for work. Immediately after filing, the plaintiff moves for leave to issue subpoenas to the ISPs of the defendants in order to obtain their identifying information.
Once leave is granted and the information obtained, plaintiffs attorneys send demand letters to the now-identified individuals sued, giving them a choice: They can attempt to defend a suit in a far away court, risking liability up to $150,000 in copyright statutory damages plus attorney fees and costs. Or, they can pay a settlement in the $2,900-$5,000 range. Because the settlement amount is less than the cost to defend, and the downside risk of litigation is so great under copyrights damages scheme, the pressure to settle rather than raise legitimate defenses is high. Thus, a courts decision granting leave to issue discovery often gives the plaintiffs in these cases the only remedy they really want: the ability to demand settlements from the Doe defendants.
Well discuss the major players and what theyre doing rightand wrong.
If you intend to take a course for CLE credit, please make sure your state is listed in the "Accreditation" section to the upper right of the program description. Accreditation displayed is unique to the purchased program format (live conference, live webcast, on demand, podcast). Credit totals listed for live conferences are the maximum credits available. Credits issued will be based upon actual time in attendance. Credit totals for other formats are for complete programs. Partial credit is not available for any online or downloadable format.
West LegalEdcenter will not provide accreditation for states not listed.
This product is intended for individual use by the named purchaser. Group viewings for online programs may be arranged for five or more attorneys within the same organization prior to viewing by emailing west.wlec-sales@thomson.com.
