Florida Judge Won't Let The RIAA Off The Hook

from the pissed-off-judge dept

Wed, May 7th 2008 1:23pm — Mike Masnick

If you follow the various RIAA lawsuits, you'll notice the pattern. The RIAA bullies and bullies and bullies people, trying to get them to settle. They almost never want to go to court -- and if someone fights back -- especially to the point of filing countersuits, the RIAA looks to get out of the case as quickly as possible. Step one, of course, is trying to get the countersuits dismissed. Apparently, it tried to do that last year when a defendant in Tampa countersued the RIAA. The judge, however, wouldn't let the RIAA off the hook and refused to dismiss most of the counterclaims. Amazingly, in a very similar case in front of the same judge, with the defendant again countersuing -- the RIAA asked the court to dismiss the countersuits, claiming the earlier decision was in error. Generally speaking, it's probably not a great idea to tell the judge that a ruling he made a few months back in a nearly identical case was a mistake. After receiving the motion to dismiss the countersuit Tuesday evening, the judge turned it down first thing Wednesday morning. The judge's order itself is short and sweet, saying that the RIAA showed no evidence as to why the original ruling was incorrect and so it sees no reason to treat this countersuit any differently than the last one. Of course, just like last time, the RIAA doesn't want this to go to court, and will likely try to settle up as quickly as possible.

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Filed Under: countersuits, florida, lawsuits, riaa
Companies: riaa

16 Comments

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eleete, 7 May 2008 @ 2:03pm

Wrong State
Ohhhhh RIAA you picked the wrong state to pull that in, lol. let's see some sparks fly.
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Anonymous Coward, 7 May 2008 @ 2:13pm

Watching the slow death of the RIAA is very amusing.

I'd put money that, by 2012, the organization is no more, having been exposed as the criminal organization it is.
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alex, 7 May 2008 @ 2:18pm

i'm continuously amused by how stupid the RIAA is. someone fresh out of law school couldnt make these mistakes on purpose.
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eleete, 7 May 2008 @ 2:18pm

Govenrments Take Note
Especially their lobbying tactics.
http://www.wired.com/politics/law/news/2001/10/47552

http://copyfight.corante.com/archi ves/2004/09/07/riaa_lobbyist_drm_up_or_induce_is_gonna_getcha.php

http://digg.com/music/RIAA_spen t_2_million_lobbying_for_tougher_IP_laws_in_2007

eleete.com
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Ben, 7 May 2008 @ 2:34pm

I doubt it will be dead by 2012, but I imagine most of the recording industry will look completely different in the next decade or so. It seems like the recording industry's business model was based on the artists' need for someone else to do the mass distribution, but now all you need is enough money to get the servers and the bandwidth and your fans will do the rest(see Nine Inch Nails). I imagine eventually (talking longer than 15-20 yrs) copyright law will either change or become un-enforced, if only for cost-benefit reasons.
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eleete, 7 May 2008 @ 2:43pm

Re: Let the Ancillary Product be Born
Music isn't the only product on the board here.

eleete.com
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alkeras, 7 May 2008 @ 3:20pm

Florida is apparently pretty cool
I'm glad to see that Florida seems to respect the law for the most part. This is the same state that has threatened to disbar Jack Thompson. Go Florida!
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Anonymous Coward, 7 May 2008 @ 4:26pm

Screw the RIAA and those they represent. The Music Industry is changing. Check this out a new and better way: http://www.sellaband.com/site/how-it-works.html
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barren waste, 7 May 2008 @ 4:50pm

It is a sad state...
...of affairs when we are overjoyed because a government sponsored agency is required, for once, to obey the laws. Now if we could just get the rest of the agencies sponsored and opperated by the government to obey the laws....
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ray, 7 May 2008 @ 7:20pm

put an exorbant amount on the countersuit
something they cannot pay... whats microshaft worth.. put that dollar amount on it, make them go to court.. and make them go into bankruptcy... look on the bright side... u'll b rich.. they will lose finally(takes balls i know) but then there will be precident and it will all be over and the MafIAA will be done with for good.. just my 2 cents and for the record IANAL
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Beatles, 7 May 2008 @ 11:23pm

countersuits may be the key
One empathizes with the financial plight of the artists who are being cheated out of potential income - but a class action counter suit may in fact be the answer to halt the abuses of the RIAA
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Anonymous Coward, 8 May 2008 @ 6:20am

Re: countersuits may be the key
That 'potential income' is a myth. Bands make little money off of CD sales -- most of it goes to cover costs or line the label's pockets -- and they're getting none of the money that the RIAA settles for. Artists (and their music) are the stick the RIAA is using to beat us with, and nothing more.
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bored, 8 May 2008 @ 8:16am

OWNED !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :-)
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Anonymous Coward, 8 May 2008 @ 12:36pm

Re: countersuits may be the key
"One empathizes with the financial plight of the artists who are being cheated out of potential income"

...by the RIAA. None of the money recovered so far has been going to the artists, remember that.

IANAL, but I think there would be serious problems with mounting a class action lawsuit, for legal and logistical reasons. Especially when some of the people sued by the RIAA were already dead by the time the original threat was made...
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Scorpiaux, 8 May 2008 @ 9:06pm

Countersuits, etc.
"Of course, ... , the RIAA doesn't want this to go to court, and will likely try to settle up as quickly as possible."

You post "Of course" as if the RIAA is somehow doing something underhanded by looking for a settlement out of court. There are two good reasons, or more, to settle before going to trial. The first is that going to trial is very expensive. The second is that a trial can easily get out of control and become unpredictable. These two considerations are valid for plaintiff and defendant alike. I have heard that most suits are handled without going to trial.
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Nancy Emmett, 23 Sep 2008 @ 12:16pm

Riaa
Please explain your acronyms in parentheses!!

What in the world is Riaa and who was the judge??????????????
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