The RIAA brought an abrupt end (PDF) to the longstanding copyright trial Warner v. Cassin earlier this month, after filing a sudden motion
to dismiss late last May.
The dismissal, approved by the White Plains, New York court on June 4, was discovered Wednesday by Ray Beckerman of copyright blog Recording Industry vs. The People. He notes that discussions had
just begun on the principle of "making available" -- that is,
offering a file for download via a P2P client's "shared folders"
feature. With recent case history suddenly shifting towards the defendant, instead of the RIAA, it
appears that the case may have been dropped in order to snuff out another
unfavorable ruling.
"They were afraid of [Warner v. Cassin] Judge Robinson deciding the case,
because his would be the most well-informed decision so far," said
Beckerman, in an interview with Ars Technica.
The RIAA has thus far remained quiet on its reasons for the dismissal.
Warner dropped the case voluntarily and "without prejudice," leaving
both sides to bear the cost of their legal fees and leaving its complaint
open to future litigation. It is possible, notes Beckerman, that Warner may have
closed the door on future, similar cases as well, if it turns out that
defendant Cassin was previously identified through a prior "John Doe"
proceeding, which Warner had also voluntarily dropped.
Federal law states that cases where "plaintiff
previously dismissed any federal-or state-court action based on or including
the same claim" as another future case, then a second dismissal -- such as
Warner v. Cassin -- automatically operates as an
"adjudication" of cases' merits.
The dismissal of Warner v. Cassin marks yet another iteration
of an emerging RIAA pattern: walking away -- or trying to -- from cases it feels it cannot win, or cases that
might result in an undesirable precedent. In Atlantic v. Boyer,
where Atlantic tried to have a judge dismiss a counterclaims suit filed against
it by plaintiff Eva Boyer, a District Judge expressed his annoyance with the
RIAA's seemingly dogged antics, denying Atlantic's motion almost immediately
and without any response from Boyer.
Speaking in the comments section, Beckerman says defendant Joan
Cassin has a chance of winning back her legal fees, although she is undecided
on whether or not she will choose to do so.