Freelance Writers Settlement and Google Case ...
by , 2008-11-18
Dear Editor:
This is a response to the distortions and assertions made by Irvin Mushnick in his article "Supreme Court Weighs Reviving Freelance Writers’ Settlement – and Google Case Lurks."
Before the original settlement in the class action suit was finalized, class members could have opted out of the settlement and filed their own suits if they felt the settlement was insufficient. Several hundred people did just that. Out of the thousands of class members there was a "slate" of exactly 10 objectors who decided they would speak out for the "injustices" of the settlement by objecting to the Court of Appeals. The vast majority of class members were happy with the settlement and pleased to get something back for their work, considering that it was clear from federal code that recovery was not possible if the works were not registered. It is important to note that it is not worth the time or money for most freelancers to register their works, especially if the works were time sensitive and would virtually be useless for future reference on the internet. In other words the "license by default", which Mr. Muchnick is so proud that he coined, either is meaningless for time sensitive items or has little residual value to the author via seach engines. Mr. Muchnick continues to push the idea that a freelance article submitted to a newpaper or magazine is on a par with a royalty system such as ASCAP. That suggestion is laughable on its face.
The bottom line is that if Mr. Muchnick and the other objectors had not filed an appeal, the settlement would have been final and the claims paid. With the additional attorneys fees incurred through appeals the settlement now, as Mr. Muchnick phrased it, would indeed be worth "crumbs" even if the court grants Cert and the appeal is eventually denied. The objectors will tell you that they were against the settlement on principle. The truth is that they were greedy and felt the settlement was not enough. They envisioned the Second Circuit ruling in their favor and sending the case back to District Court for more negotiations and eventually more cash. Well it backfired. The court threw the entire case out on jurisdictional grounds, which could easily have been predicted by reading the federal code concerning copyright registration. Because of their greed, thousands of freelance writers will get zero for past works.
In full disclosure, I am a freelance newspaper writer who submitted thousands of columns over the years. If the Supreme Court does not overturn the Circuit Court's ruling, I stand to lose a great deal of money.
Anonymous,
Palo Alto
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