Righthaven engages ‘superstar’ attorney (against DU) in litigation campaign

[Newsjock]

Source: Vegas Inc (Las Vegas Sun)

The owner of the Las Vegas Review-Journal and its copyright enforcement partner have enlisted one of the nation’s top copyright attorneys to help defend their litigation campaign.

Dale Cendali, a partner at the law firm Kirkland & Ellis LLP in New York, has been engaged by Stephens Media LLC, owner of the Review-Journal; and copyright enforcer Righthaven LLC, court records show.

... She’s also expected to appear in Righthaven’s no-warning lawsuit against the Democratic Underground, where Pulgram and other EFF attorneys are pursuing a counterclaim against Righthaven and Stephens Media.

... Eric Goldman, associate professor at California’s Santa Clara University School of Law and director of its High Tech Law Institute, said the engagement of a high-priced New York attorney by Righthaven backs up his contention Righthaven’s business model is not economically viable.

Read more: http://www.vegasinc.com/news/2011/may/04/righthaven-engages-superstar-attorney-litigation-c/

[DCKit]

1. I was under the impression that a judge just got done slapping the shit out of Righthaven...

for filing these BS suits.

[The Second Stone]

4. Yes, they have all but lost in the trial court

and they want to get it in the appeals court where it cannot go any worse for them. The trial judge hates their case. They are on the run and now is the time to finish their legal case off.

[AndyTiedye]

7. They Must Have Some Billionaires Backing Them

This is not good. How can we possibly hope to raise so much money?
Even if we could, it would be money that won't be available to help the Democrats next year.

[drm604]

9. I'm thinking the same thing.

What do they have to gain from spending so much money pursuing this?

This is starting to look like it's more of an attempt to silence free speech (left and right) through the backdoor of copyright law. They want to chill speech by making it too legally risky to run an online forum. They want online content provided and controlled only by those who can afford expensive legal teams.

I wonder if there's any way to compel them to reveal their financial backers?

[freshwest]

13. Another kochroach infestation? DU is a primary source of bug killer.

[freshwest]

2. Always suspicious. Is Koch money using them to silence DU?

[tolucano]

11. They go after conservative sites also, so I doubt it. nt

[freshwest]

12. Toss me a bone friend, just one name! I never heard of anyone but Righthaven vs. DU.

But your help won't be needed after all. I see, if not the Kochroaches, it's their jack-in-the-box, the GOP, from the replies below. We're definitely onto something here.

:dem:

:kick:

[Godhumor]

15. Free Republic was sued by Righthaven and chose to settle n/t

[freshwest]

19. Craven cowards! I still suspect them! Mrrr-rrwl... Chews on leash...

[tolucano]

16. Sorry, they have also sued the freerepublic, matt drudge,

and veterans groups (overwhelmingly conservative). There is a long list of people righthaven has sued, both liberal and conservative. It doesn't matter who is backing them (stevens group) they are loyal to no political party, just money.

[freshwest]

18. I still want to take them to the woodshed. Is that wrong? And you didn't do the obligatory FR diss!

Are you a troll from freeperville? You might be a troll and not even know it! Just kidding! Welcome to DU!

:rofl:

:hi:

[tolucano]

21. Haha, thank you.:) nt

[The Second Stone]

3. Trial lawyer checking in here

I know nothing of the case except what I read here.

These guys have their reputations because they go to war and scorch the earth. DU has already won this case and the only thing that can pull it out for Righthaven is a lawyer and law firm that will spend the DU to death.

There is only one way to preserve this win, and that preservation is fairly well guaranteed if DU can step up and be just as aggressive.

This is going to be as ugly and as long as Caldera v Novell. Righthaven is undoubtedly funded by somebody like the people who funded the Arkansas Project and Breitbart.

The key here is that we all need to donate money to DU to match this. This is not just a fight for DU, but a fight against intimidation for free speech. If you are the kind of patriot that believes in free speech and fighting for liberty, but don't like to go around celebrating violence with jingoistic talk, this is your fight. You will not be in any danger, and you won't be in the courtroom, but you will be doing as much for this cause as all the women who went to work in World War II to keep the supplies flowing.

What I ask all of you to do now is figure out how much you can spare every month and send it every month to DU. I will be sending $20 per month. I don't work for DU in any way.

[Old and In the Way]

5. Very true!

I agree and I think this copyright lawsuit is more about a longterm legal strategy of shutting down internet free speech than winning financial settlements. We need to watch this very closely. It's almost like the Right wants to take away our ability to use their own words in order to underscore and highlight what their true agenda is.

[canetoad]

8. DU is being defended by the Electronic Frontier Foundation

If Skinner needs a funding drive to augment legal costs, I'm sure he'll ask for it.

[starroute]

17. The Electronic Freedom Foundation really has their teeth into this

Two days ago, John Perry Barlow -- EFF co-founder and former Grateful Dead songwriter -- cheerfully tweeted a link to a New York Times story on the Righthaven lawsuits. I think EFF knows better than anyone what the stakes are, and they're not letting go.

http://twitter.com/#!/JPBarlow/status/65518515414765568

EFF is going to destroy them. http://nyti.ms/j0ppTy

[RamboLiberal]

22. EFF has a superstar as well

Attorneys affiliated with the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), including another superstar, Harvard Law graduate Laurence Pulgram of the San Francisco office of the firm Fenwick & West LLP, convinced a federal judge to unseal the lawsuit contract between Righthaven and Stephens Media.

http://www.vegasinc.com/news/2011/may/04/righthaven-engages-superstar-attorney-litigation-c/

[no_hypocrisy]

10. + 1,000,000

[JDPriestly]

6. Kirkland & Ellis -- Learn all about them.

Brian Benczkowski, who has led the Senate Judiciary Committee's Republican staff through two U.S. Supreme Court nominations, is leaving Capitol Hill for private practice.

His departure from the staff was announced publicly at a committee meeting this morning by his boss, Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), the committee’s ranking Republican. A source familiar with Benczkowski’s plans said later that the firm he is joining is Kirkland & Ellis, though the source did not know what his title would be.

. . . .

http://legaltimes.typepad.com/blt/2010/09/top-republican-aide-headed-to-kirkland-ellis.html

Their home website

http://www.kirkland.com/

Some of Wikipedia's information (controversial). Take it with a grain of salt.

In August 1994 pursuant to the newly-reenacted independent counsel law, Starr was appointed by a three-judge panel to continue the Whitewater investigation. He replaced Robert B. Fiske, a moderate Republican who had been appointed by Attorney General Janet Reno.<11> Although Starr and other independent counsels were later criticized as unaccountable and unstoppable, the statute gave the Attorney General and the Special Division the authority to remove an independent counsel.

Starr took the position part-time and remained active with his law firm, Kirkland & Ellis, as this was permitted by statute and was also the norm with previous independent counsel investigations .<12> . . . .

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ken_Starr

[freshwest]

14. A load of crooked politicans abusing the law again.

[jpak]

20. I claim no copyright on the following comment - please feel free to copy it

FUCK RIGHTHAVEN

yup

[freshwest]

23. Why, thank you.

[TroglodyteScholar]

24. ...

:thumbsup:

[sakabatou]

25. Wait, they're suing DU AGAIN?!