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New Jersey Woman Sues RIAA for Extortion Under Racketeering Laws

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on February 19, 2004 - 8:20am.
Rockaway Township, N.J. -- A New Jersey woman targeted by one of the Recording Industry Association of America's (RIAA) copyright infringement lawsuits has countersued the major record labels under U.S. racketeering laws, claiming they are extorting settlement fees from the alleged copyright infringers they have sued. Michele Scimeca says that by suing alleged file-swappers on charges that could bring damages in the millions of dollars -- and then offering to settle the suits for lesser amounts -- the labels are engaging in extortion similar to tactics used by organized crime. In papers filed with the U.S. District Court in Newark, Scimeca's attorney Bart Lombardo states, "This scare tactic has caused a vast amount of settlements from individuals who feared fighting such a large institution and feel victim to these actions and felt forced to provide funds to settle these actions instead of fighting." The RIAA has to date sued nearly 1,500 individuals for copyright infringement, having settled with close to 400 defendants for amounts between $2,000 and $10,000. Legal experts have called Scimeca's strategy a novel idea, but somewhat of a long-shot defense against the record companies' copyright infringement claims.
tags: RIAA | Laws | New Jersey | Racketeering |