Penn. Judge

Penn. Judge Says File-Swappers Targeted by RIAA Must Be Advised of Rights

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 29, 2004 - 4:28am.

Philadelphia -- A federal court in Pennsylvania has ruled that Internet service providers in the state who are served "John Doe" lawsuits by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), asking for the identities of subscribers accused of copyright infringement, must first provide these subscribers detailed notices on the subpoenas, including information on their rights and how they can contest them. U.S. District Judge Cynthia Rufe ruled on Oct. 12 that ISPs must provide information, including a list of attorneys, to their subscribers targeted by the RIAA. "Receiving notice from your ISP that you are being sued by the record companies is a terrifying experience for the grandmas, students, and working mothers who have been caught up in the RIAA's lawsuit crusade," said Electronic Frontier Foundation legal director Cindy Cohn. "By requiring ISPs to include basic information such as the right to challenge lawsuits and where to go for help, the court took a big step toward helping people understand their options." Groups including the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Public Citizen and the ACLU filed briefs in the case supporting the judge's decision. While the ruling only applies to ISPs in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Public Citizen attorney Paul Levy noted, "We can only hope that judges throughout the country will follow this example."