Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Another RIAA lawyer goes to DOJ

According to this report by Jon Newton at p2pnet.net, still another RIAA lawyer from Jenner & Block, one Ian Gershengorn, has joined the Obama Administration's Justice Department.

[Ed. note. I now know of 6 RIAA lawyers who have joined the Justice Department under the new administration. Under the law, these lawyers are all recused from involvement in any matter involving the RIAA or EMI, Vivendi Universal, SONY BMG, or Warner Bros Records. -R.B.]



Keywords: lawyer digital copyright law online internet law legal download upload peer to peer p2p file sharing filesharing music movies indie independent label freeculture creative commons pop/rock artists riaa independent mp3 cd favorite songs intellectual property portable music player

5 comments:

Kim said...

I'm a bit confused about the benefits vs disadvantages of this. On one hand, if these guys play by the rules (or are kept to them), they can't work in downloading-related areas. On the other hand, are they going to try to influence the Obama administration in favour of the RIAA?

Either way, 6 RIAA lawyers in the administration seems to be a real trend, not a coincidence. How do we get such a stacking, and why is it happening?

Anonymous said...

Kim,

Follow the money.

{The Common Man Speaking}

Anonymous said...

Kim
...ask Senator Biden, now our VP in charge of coordinating efforts to provide legal status with new laws he has introduced. His longtime connections to the RIAA, and more directly with the MPAA, are very visible, as is the monetary support he has accepted from those organizations. Such blatant disregard for the injustice brought upon the very voters that placed him in office shows his allegiance is not to people, but to the ruthless cartels he tends to please.

Oldphart in Kansas

Anonymous said...

Kim, even if they follow the rules it still is an advantage for the RIAA and content holding industries. The lawyers' presences alone will have an influence on people working with and under them -- indeed, how could it not?

And will they follow the rules? If they don't, who will reprimand them? Their superiors, who are also connected to the content industry?

So, this is somewhat discouraging.

XYZZY

Anonymous said...

Gershengorn is counsel of record for the MPAA in the "Bunnell-Torrentspy" cases pending before the Ninth Circuit. Brian Hauck, another appointee, is counsel of record for plaintiff movie studios in an MPAA-sponsored lawsuit against isoHunt pending in the Central District of California. RIAA/MPAA is obviously going to have their way in the Obama administration.