Duluth, Minn. - The first actual copyright infringement jury trial for an individual suspected of illegal file-sharing got underway in Minnesota on Tuesday, as 30-year-old mother of two Jammie Thomas appeared in court to answer to allegations she offered 1,702 songs on the Kazaa file-sharing network in 2005.

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and member labels including Capitol Records, Warner Bros. Records and Sony BMG, are seeking over $1.2 million in damages against Thomas.

For her part, Thomas maintains she never shared the songs in question; no charges have been filed against her 11 and 13 year-old children.

While the RIAA points out that most of the 26,000 individuals it has filed similar claims against have settled, Thomas' attorney Brian Toder told the Associated Press that this is mostly due to the fact that jury trials can cost defendants tens of thousands of dollars.

"She came into my office and was willing to pay a retainer of pretty much what they wanted to settle for," Toder told AP.

"And if someone's willing to pay a lawyer rather than pay to make it go away, that says a lot."

Toder will first seek to make the RIAA prove they own the copyrights to the songs in question, and on Monday U.S. District Judge Michael J. Davis would not allow 784 pages of related documents by the RIAA -- because they were submitted seven months after deadline.

Opening arguments in the trial were expected to commence on Tuesday.

Related Links:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071002/ap_on_hi_te/downloading_music_5 (AP)

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20071002-first-riaa-trial-gets-under-way-with-jury-selection.html

http://www.riaa.com