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January 27, 2005 — Two teams of Proskauer lawyers prepared and submitted two separate Amicus Briefs on behalf of numerous entities, trade associations and individuals that own copyrights or related rights, urging the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn the Ninth Circuit's opinion in the Grokster case, which held that unauthorized "P2P" services that foster illegal downloading of copyrighted music, motion pictures and television shows are not liable for contributory copyright infringement.
Charles B. Ortner (who also serves as National Legal Counsel for the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, Inc. ("The Recording Academy")), and Jon A. Baumgarten, William M. Hart, Frank P. Scibilia and Isaac Nesser prepared an Amicus Brief on behalf of the 18,000 member Recording Academy, which presents the annual GRAMMY Awards® television show, the Recording Artists' Coalition (RAC), a number of other recording artist and songwriter associations and 54 high-profile recording artists including Don Henley, Glenn Frey and the other members of The Eagles, Jimmy Buffett, Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds, Sheryl Crow, Brooks & Dunn, Bonnie Raitt, The Dixie Chicks, Reba McEntire, Avril Lavigne, Dido, Sarah McLachlan, Elvis Costello, Diane Krall, Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys, and Ed Robertson and Kevin Hearn of Barenaked Ladies. The Brief discussed the harm that the Ninth Circuit's opinion would cause to the creators of music, and others who work in the music industry, who rely upon protection of copyrights for their livelihoods; and the harm which would be suffered by the public and our nation's musical heritage in the absence of effective remedies against those, such as Grokster, who facilitate or otherwise contribute to the infringement of copyrights over the Internet. A press release issued by The Recording Academy and a copy of the entire Amicus Brief, are on its official website: http://www.grammy.com/news/academy/2005/0125grokster.aspx.
Hank L. Goldsmith and Christopher Wolf prepared an Amicus Brief on behalf of eight global rights associations, including the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry ("IFPI"), with 1,450 record company members in 75 countries; the International Confederation of Music Publishers, which, through 32 member associations, represents most of music publishing throughout the world; and the International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers, with 207 authors' societies members in 109 countries representing more than 2 million creators of musical, dramatic, and literary works, as well as works involving the visual and graphic arts. This Brief highlighted the risk that an affirmation of the Ninth Circuit decision could cause the United States to falter in its compliance with several international agreements. A press release issued by IFPI, and a copy of the entire Amicus Brief are on its official website: http://www.ifpi.org/site-content/press/20050125.html.
This is the most important copyright case to reach the Supreme Court since the Sony Betamax decision over two decades ago, and the Supreme Court's decision in the Grokster case will have a profound effect on the economic viability of the entire music, motion picture and television industries throughout the world.
About Proskauer Rose
Proskauer Rose, founded in 1875, is an international law firm providing a wide variety of legal services to clients worldwide from offices in Boca Raton, Boston, Chicago, Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York, Newark, Paris, São Paulo, and Washington, D.C. The firm has wide experience in all areas of practice important to businesses and individuals including corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, general commercial litigation, corporate governance matters, conducting internal corporate investigations, white collar criminal defense, private equity and fund formation, patent and intellectual property litigation and prosecution, labor and employment law, real estate transactions, bankruptcy and reorganizations, trusts and estates, and taxation. Its clients span industries including chemicals, entertainment, financial services, health care, information technology, insurance, internet, lodging and gaming, manufacturing, media and communications, pharmaceuticals, real estate investment, sports, and transportation. The firm can be found online at http://www.proskauer.com.
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