DU files against Stephens Media to recover $774,683 in Righthaven legal fees

[Newsjock]

Source: Vegas Inc (Las Vegas Sun)

Attorneys say the owner of the Las Vegas Review-Journal should be required to pay $774,683 in legal fees for what critics call a failed ''shakedown'' copyright infringement lawsuit that threatened the free speech rights of a political website.

The attorneys represent the Democratic Underground, a website that defeated Righthaven LLC, the R-J’s copyright enforcement partner, in one of Righthaven’s copyright infringement lawsuits.

... "Righthaven and Stephens Media had an improper motivation in the pursuit of this lawsuit and their litigation campaign more generally. They sought to shake down website operators and bloggers for nuisance-value settlements with threats of seizure of their domain name and huge statutory damage awards, regardless of whether those defendants’ uses of the works at issue were actually infringing,'' said a filing Tuesday in federal court in Las Vegas seeking recovery of legal fees by Democratic Underground attorneys. ''As to deterrence, an award of fees is necessary to dissuade these parties and others from any similar scheme of shakedown lawsuits threatening staggering statutory damage awards and seizure of websites. Righthaven and Stephens Media pursued these claims such that numerous instances of legitimate fair use, like that here, would necessarily be dragged into their litigation machine."

... Last month, the lawsuit was named the U.S. Copyright Case of the Year by the international publication Managing Intellectual Property.

Read more: http://www.vegasinc.com/news/2012/apr/11/review-journal-owner-facing-774000-fee-demand-righ/

[rrneck]

1. Sic 'em. nt

[elleng]

2. ONWARD!!!

[annabanana]

3. GO for it!

Every last damn nickle. . .

[NYC_SKP]

4. Wow- that shit will buy a LOT of Stars!

[Skinner]

21. Actually, it won't.

If we recover any money, all of it will go to paying attorneys.

[cyberpj]

23. Damages? To DUs good name and reputation? Something? Anything?

Last edited Fri Apr 13, 2012, 06:31 PM - Edit history (1)

It would seem something is deserved for time and effort required to fight it. No?

[Auggie]

25. In many cases it's a victory to recover legal expenses

As for reputation, who really cares outside of a few of us? It's life, and life isn't always fair (as my attorney likes to remind me).

Good luck, Skinner, et al.

[NYC_SKP]

26. I figured as much. These are your damages. I hope you win.

And I wish you could recover something more in the way of punitive damages.

[The Wielding Truth]

28. If nothing else it should stop them from more false attacks.Right?

[Jim Lane]

29. Quite appropriate, Skinner, and let's give a shout-out to those attorneys.

According to an earlier article in the Las Vegas Sun, DU was represented pro bono (without charge) by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, lawyers from Winston & Strawn (a big corporate-oriented law firm), and Las Vegas attorney Chad Bowers. These attorneys knew that they didn't have a certainty -- or even, in my guesstimation, a probability -- that they'd get paid.

I hope DU wins this motion, both to pay the attorneys and to stick it to the right-wing troglodytes who run the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

[SidDithers]

5. Cool stuff...

Sid

[jsmirman]

6. This is pretty awesome

and I find their lawsuit strategy a bit baffling.

If they really were concerned about the content being excerpted, why didn't they just file a takedown notice?

[mindwalker_i]

7. Skinner should get the monster-balls award from Colbert for this one

He delivered a well-deserved ass-kicking.

[DisgustipatedinCA]

8. Wooden stake through the heart, burn the body,scatter the ashes

This troll group needs to be completely eradicated, and they need to serve as a warning to other would-be troll companies.

[ellisonz]

9. "Democratic Underground, a big political website in Washington, D.C."

[Bolo Boffin]

17. Then I'm in the Washington, DC suburb of Dallas, Texas, evidently. n/t

[pinboy3niner]

18. DU #Occupies everywhere!

You can't explain that!

--Bill O'Reilly

[NBachers]

10. O heaven, the vanity of wretched fools!

Blunt-witted lord, ignoble in demeanor!

[arthritisR_US]

11. Who is that? nt

[DCKit]

12. Right clicked on the image, look for "info" and...

NBachers/Righthaven.jpg

[NBachers]

13. Steven Gibson, CEO of Righthaven

"Steven Gibson is CEO of Righthaven, which buys copyrights from the Las Vegas Review-Journal, then sues people who have violated those copyrights."

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2010/aug/04/unlikely-targets-emerging-war-media-content/

Grab yer balls and hold on tight, Stevie Boy, 'cause it's gonna be a long, hard ride down.

[arthritisR_US]

14. His ill gotten gains have certainly wrought

him a nice office... I hope he loses his shirt!

[Raster]

35. Or at least his vest.

[arthritisR_US]

36. Ha! :)

[sakabatou]

15. Copyright Case of the Year! Woohoo!

[MADem]

16. Git 'em! nt

[UnrepentantLiberal]

19. I like that this article is an excerpt from the Las Vegas Sun.

[madokie]

20. You betcha

as word salad sarah would say

[RC]

22. Not to be confused with this Steve Gibson.

Steve Gibson (computer programmer)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Gibson_%28computer_programmer%29

[sinkingfeeling]

24. Excellent.

[Wait Wut]

27. Ahhhh...just answered my own question.

I had heard Righthaven had, or would, file bankruptcy. Looks like the lawyers were well prepared and filed this against Stephens Media.

Good Luck!!!

[midnight]

30. K&R

[trof]

31. Do we get to split the proceeds amongst the members?

Boy, I hope so.

[gateley]

32. Can we resurrect GrovelBot for a fundraising effort to help DU if they aren't

successful?? WOW -- that's a LOT of money! We'd like to help!

[Skinner]

33. Thanks. But DU didn't pay that much money.

We received free legal representation from the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF). Most of the award for legal fees, if we get any, will go to EFF.

DU paid about $3,500 out-of-pocket on legal representation before EFF took the case. So our share of any award would be about $3,500.

[lonestarnot]

34. Git it!

K & R!