1st Circuit upholds $675K award against Tenenbaum in long-running RIAA file-sharing case
Still fighting a $675,000 verdict awarded in 2009 in a copyright suit spearheaded by the Recording Industry Association of America, onetime Boston University graduate student Joel Tenenbaum asked a federal appeals court to find that the hefty sum—which amounted, he said, to $22,500 for each illegally downloaded song—violated his due-process rights.
However, the Boston-based 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals saw the case differently. On Tuesday, it affirmed an earlier federal district court ruling, citing the willful nature of Tenenbaum’s infringements after he was warned that he was violating the law, and the deterrent value to others of the big-bucks award, the Hollywood Reporter’s Hollywood, Esq. blog reports.
The entertainment trade publication also provides a link to the appellate opinion.
Ars Technica’s Law & Disorder blog and Techdirt also have stories. None includes any comment from Tenenbaum or his legal counsel.
See also:
ABAJournal.com (2010): “Judge Slashes ‘Excessive’ $675K Award in Music Download Case to $67.5K”
ABAJournal.com (2011): “1st Circuit Reinstates Original $675K Award Against Grad Student in Music Download Case”
ABAJournal.com (2012): “Supreme Court Turns Down File-Sharing Appeal Challenging Remittitur Procedure”
Bloomberg BNA: “First Circuit Rejects Tenenbaum’s Due Process Challenge; Upholds $675K Award”
