To date, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has dealt lawsuits to around 19,000 American citizens who they believed were guilty of illegally trading copyrighted music files over the internet. Many of these lawsuits have raised eyebrows, such as the lawsuit against a family with no computer or internet access, and of course, the suit aimed at the deceased grandmother, Gertrude Walton.
Larry Scantlebury was another at the center of an RIAA lawsuit, however he died in June - with the suit remaining unresolved. Not to be deterred by the death of the defendant, the Plaintiffs (Warner Bros. Records Inc., Sony BMG Music Entertainment, UMG Recordings, Inc., BMG Music, Arista Records LLC, Capitol Records, Inc., and Atlantic Recording Corporation) have made a motion to stay the case for 60 days in order to allow the family time to "grieve", after which time they want RIAA lawyers to start taking depositions of the late Mr. Scantlebury's children:
Source:
p2pnet
In support thereof, Plaintiffs state the following:
1. Plaintiffs have recently learned that Defendant, Larry Scantlebury, passed away on June 20, 2006. Please see the attached Death Certificate.
2. Prior to Mr. Scantlebury’s passing, Plaintiffs believed that there was potential to resolve the case. While at the time of Mr. Scantlebury’s death, he had not responded to Plaintiffs’ discovery (he had asked for and received extensions), he had indicated that others, in addition to Mr. Scantlebury, were involved in the infringement of Plaintiffs’ copyrights.
3. Plaintiffs do not believe it appropriate to discuss a resolution of the case with the family so close to Mr. Scantlebury’s passing. Plaintiffs therefore request a stay of 60 days to allow the family additional time to grieve.
4. In the event the parties do not reach a resolution with Mr. Scantlebury’s estate or the other family members involved, Plaintiffs anticipate amending the complaint following depositions of members of Mr. Scantlebury’s family.
WHEREFORE, Plaintiffs respectfully request this court stay the case for 60 days and extend all deadlines 60 days.
Source:
p2pnet
