Guess Who Just Lost Another Lawsuit? If You Said Righthaven...
from the down-they-go dept
Short and sweet this time. Eric Goldman points us to the news that Righthaven has had yet another case dismissed in Nevada over the lack of standing. This ruling came from Judge Roger Hunt, the same judge who ruled on the first case (Democratic Underground) that determined that Righthaven never held the copyright to the material, and thus had no standing to sue. However, he also cites the other such ruling by Judge Philip Pro. Get used to this, because there will likely be a flurry of such rulings on pretty much all of the remaining Nevada cases. The same may be true in Colorado, but we still have to wait and see there.Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
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Filed Under: copyright, standing
Companies: righthaven, stephens media
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Sell your stock if you have it. They are going down soon.
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http://xkcd.com/303/
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unfortunately, i do not currently have one.
here's an I.O.U.
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Well, I have been sitting here at work (eating lunch) waiting for someone to leave an insightful comment - so I guess we are even.
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I suppose, if I had to think about it for more than an internet second, I would realize that without the SAA, then Righthaven would be lacking an SAA to prove up its right to the copyright claim, and if something else were the case, I can't help but think that THEIR LAWYER might have put it in the OPPOSITION filed May 18, which the judge noted that he HAD considered, but maybe not.
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I suppose, if I had to think about it for more than an internet second, I would realize that without the SAA, then Righthaven would be lacking an SAA to prove up its right to the copyright claim, and if something else were the case, I can't help but think that THEIR LAWYER might have put it in the OPPOSITION filed May 18, which the judge noted that he HAD considered, but maybe not.
It's not a strawman. Perhaps there was another assignment/SAA between Righthaven and Stephens. I don't know. And if neither were in evidence, Judge Hunt doesn't know either.
All I'm asking is a basic, simple question--a question that is very relevant--were the SAA/assignment documents in evidence?
If you don't know, you don't know. I certainly don't know. Do you?
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"Perhaps there was another assignment/SAA between Righthaven and Stephens. I don't know. And if neither were in evidence, Judge Hunt doesn't know either."
You're right. It's not a strawman. It's the Wizard of Oz. Do you have any other fairy tale arguments we should seriously consider?
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Your notion that they must have produced the assignment and the SAA in every case is just plain wrong. It's not a "fairy tale argument." It's reality.
This is important because I don't think they can just start dismissing Righthaven suits left and right on the standing issue if the documents that purportedly prove there's no standing aren't in evidence in each particular case. That's my understanding of it.
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You're right.
"Your notion that they must have produced the assignment and the SAA in every case is just plain wrong."
I'm wrong.
"This is important because I don't think they can just start dismissing Righthaven suits left and right on the standing issue if the documents that purportedly prove there's no standing aren't in evidence in each particular case."
I'm going to disagree with you and the judge here. If the judge finds good cause in the Democratic Underground case to review its impact on other cases before the same court for potential abuses, I think that's sufficient for the court to decide on its own to consider that evidence.
HOWEVER, I'm thinking a much better step would've been issuing an order to show cause why it shouldn't be dismissed so that once entered the evidence and any responsives could be heard in the present case. Fair enough?
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"Perhaps there was ..."
and end with a conclusion based on YOUR possible maybe assumption:
"Judge Hunt doesn't know either."
Waste of time, waste of air, you have raised NO valid point here. Try this crap in front of said judge and watch how fast you get smacked down.
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The SAA governs all copyright assignments between Stephens and Righthaven.
Should the judge have required Righthaven to provide another copy of the SAA, even though it was in fact entered into evidence in the other cases?
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I'm no expert on evidence, but I think the answer is yes. Shouldn't the document that the judge bases his ruling on actually be in evidence? I certainly think so, or at the very least, Righthaven should/could have stipulated that the same documents were used. Otherwise it seems like a reversible error to me.
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On appeal, it would most likely get remanded. Once remanded, the Judge Hunt would require Righthaven to produce the SAA - and then the court would dismiss the case again.
That's assuming the appeals court doesn't uphold Judge Hunt's ruling in the first place.
Also, do you know for certain that the SAA is not in evidence? The judge did say "the standing issues in this case are the same."
The rules of evidence in these cases follow state rules, not the Federal Rules of Evidence, and I have no idea what Nevada's laws are. It's entirely possible that Judge Hunt can use that evidence in this case, without it being introduced by the defendant.
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... Are you high?
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Nothing if not consistent
Let's hope they are smart enough to cut their losses and move onto something else - preferably something they are good at...
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Defendants who settled
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