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Judge dismisses ACS:Law file-sharing cases

These cases involved eight parallel actions brought by Media C.A.T against separate defendants under the Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988 ("the 1988 Act"). These cases involved allegations of copyright infringement against each Defendant for allegedly sharing titles on Peer to Peer networks. The cases are particularly interesting as they mark one of the first know determinations by a Court in England and Wales of a case brought on these grounds. However, they need to be viewed correctly as a procedural application on paper by the Claimant for Default Judgment with no written or oral submissions from either party. This is basically a mechanism utilised in Court for a Claimant to enter Judgment against a Defendant who has not provided a Defence within the time limits. His Honour Judge Birss QC, the Judge of the Patents County Court, gives a detailed 48 paragraph Judgment on the key issues. Most strikingly for consumers, the cases are repeatedly referred to as 'unusual', and the Claimant's right to claim is 'unclear'. The claimant's contention that 'allowing' another person to infringe is an act restricted by s16 (1)(a) and 17 of the 1988 Act is described as 'simply wrong'. Overall it appears that HHJ Birss QC considered these cases of such importance that they were not suitable for a procedural application in this way, noting that "these are specialist intellectual property claims raising difficult and potentially controversial legal issues." These cases provide a useful initial indicator on how cases of this nature may be handled by the Court. However, the position will become clearer once a Court has ruled on the detailed legal and technical matters raised by such claims after considering written and oral legal argument from both parties. Only then will a clear marker on the treatment of claims alleging copyright infringement on Peer to Peer networks be established." Ralli urge any innocent recipients of copyright infringement letters or those who have had claims issued against them to contact the firm on harassment@ralli.co.uk for a free assessment of their potential claim. Michael Forrester Solicitor Ralli

20-Dec-2010

4:18 pm