Author Topic: Being sued by model in federal court, please read! (Read 50788 times)

bpepz · « **on:** January 07, 2015, 22:44 »

-------------------------UPDATE!!!!---------------

Case has been withdrawn!

marthamarks · « **Reply #1 on:** January 08, 2015, 00:06 »

This is a big reason why I shoot wildlife.

Semmick Photo · « **Reply #2 on:** January 08, 2015, 02:36 »

Is there no way to get a pro bono lawyer?

Reef · « **Reply #3 on:** January 08, 2015, 02:52 »

You should join together and fight the real reason this happened - Stock companies ignoring stolen imagery!

VJLoops · « **Reply #4 on:** January 08, 2015, 03:29 »

Donated. Good luck Josh!

BaldricksTrousers · « **Reply #5 on:** January 08, 2015, 03:30 »

Quote from: Semmick Photo on January 08, 2015, 02:36

Is there no way to get a pro bono lawyer?

Yes, that should be straightforward, there is clearly no case to answer.

roede-orm · « **Reply #6 on:** January 08, 2015, 03:33 »

For the future, it will probably be necessary to supplement the MR. It must be signed, the photographer can not be held responsible for the misuse of images. Will donate today.

Freedom · « **Reply #7 on:** January 08, 2015, 04:36 »

Try to contact Cindy Cohen, she is a great IP lawyer and her organization can help you for free. Link: https://www.eff.org/about/staff

Cindy Cohn is the Legal Director for the Electronic Frontier Foundation as well as its General Counsel. She is responsible for overseeing the EFF's overall legal strategy and supervising EFF's fourteen staff attorneys. Ms. Cohn first became involved with the EFF in 1993, when the EFF asked her to serve as the outside lead attorney in Bernstein v. Dept. of Justice, the successful First Amendment challenge to the U.S. export restrictions on cryptography. Outside the Courts, Ms. Cohn has testified before Congress, been featured in the New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle and elsewhere for her work on digital rights and has traveled onto the Internet with Stephen Colbert.

The National Law Journal named Ms. Cohn one of 100 most influential lawyers in America in 2013, noting: "f Big Brother is watching, he better look out for Cindy Cohn." She was also named in 2006 for "rushing to the barricades wherever freedom and civil liberties are at stake online." In 2007 the National Law Journal named her one of the 50 most influential women lawyers in America. In 2010 Intellectual Property Section of the State Bar of California awarded her its Intellectual Property Vanguard Award and in 2012 the Northern California Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists awarded her the James Madison Freedom of Information Award.

[email protected]
+1 415 436 9333 x108

PGP Key
Read Cindy Cohn's extended bio

Sean Locke Photography · « **Reply #8 on:** January 08, 2015, 06:00 »

I absolutely believe the model is in the wrong, and that any competent judge would dismiss immediately.

Do you not have business insurance for just such a contingency? My insurance covered a similar issue for me.

brm1949 · « **Reply #9 on:** January 08, 2015, 06:03 »

Quote from: marthamarks on January 08, 2015, 00:06

This is a big reason why I shoot wildlife.

Same here. Litigation Lottery not for me.

BaldricksTrousers · « **Reply #10 on:** January 08, 2015, 06:22 »

Quote from: Sean Locke Photography on January 08, 2015, 06:00

I absolutely believe the model is in the wrong, and that any competent judge would dismiss immediately.

Do you not have business insurance for just such a contingency? My insurance covered a similar issue for me.

What she is doing is raking in every single person - even imaginary tarts in Dubai - who has had anything to do with the pictures. She should have no case against the photographer and the agencies, but she probably has a case against the US sex clubs etc that have used the image.

nicku · « **Reply #11 on:** January 08, 2015, 06:37 »

Quote from: marthamarks on January 08, 2015, 00:06

This is a big reason why I shoot wildlife.

The difference between $100 and $10.000/ month revenue from stock photography are the models

Sean Locke Photography · « **Reply #12 on:** January 08, 2015, 06:48 »

Quote from: BaldricksTrousers on January 08, 2015, 06:22

Quote from: Sean Locke Photography on January 08, 2015, 06:00
I absolutely believe the model is in the wrong, and that any competent judge would dismiss immediately.

Do you not have business insurance for just such a contingency? My insurance covered a similar issue for me.

What she is doing is raking in every single person - even imaginary tarts in Dubai - who has had anything to do with the pictures. She should have no case against the photographer and the agencies, but she probably has a case against the US sex clubs etc that have used the image.

Absolutely, the end user is the only one responsible.

bpepz · « **Reply #13 on:** January 08, 2015, 08:11 »

Quote from: Semmick Photo on January 08, 2015, 02:36

Is there no way to get a pro bono lawyer?

I have looked and looked and looked, no one would do it pro bono.

bpepz · « **Reply #14 on:** January 08, 2015, 08:14 »

Quote from: Freedom on January 08, 2015, 04:36

Try to contact Cindy Cohen, she is a great IP lawyer and her organization can help you for free. Link: https://www.eff.org/about/staff

Cindy Cohn is the Legal Director for the Electronic Frontier Foundation as well as its General Counsel. She is responsible for overseeing the EFF's overall legal strategy and supervising EFF's fourteen staff attorneys. Ms. Cohn first became involved with the EFF in 1993, when the EFF asked her to serve as the outside lead attorney in Bernstein v. Dept. of Justice, the successful First Amendment challenge to the U.S. export restrictions on cryptography. Outside the Courts, Ms. Cohn has testified before Congress, been featured in the New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle and elsewhere for her work on digital rights and has traveled onto the Internet with Stephen Colbert.

The National Law Journal named Ms. Cohn one of 100 most influential lawyers in America in 2013, noting: "f Big Brother is watching, he better look out for Cindy Cohn." She was also named in 2006 for "rushing to the barricades wherever freedom and civil liberties are at stake online." In 2007 the National Law Journal named her one of the 50 most influential women lawyers in America. In 2010 Intellectual Property Section of the State Bar of California awarded her its Intellectual Property Vanguard Award and in 2012 the Northern California Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists awarded her the James Madison Freedom of Information Award.

[email protected]
+1 415 436 9333 x108

PGP Key
Read Cindy Cohn's extended bio

Thanks for the recommendation, as of now though I am using lawyer Nancy E. Wolff, you guys have probably heard of her before, she does a lot of work related to stock photography and was recommend by some people at Getty, also , Shutterstock seems to like her.

bpepz · « **Reply #15 on:** January 08, 2015, 08:28 »

Quote from: Sean Locke Photography on January 08, 2015, 06:00

I absolutely believe the model is in the wrong, and that any competent judge would dismiss immediately.

Do you not have business insurance for just such a contingency? My insurance covered a similar issue for me.

I had insurance but they found a way not to cover it. As far as dismissing immediately, that would be the best case scenario, but there is little guarantee that is going to happen before the judge has more information, because as far as they know, the only thing they have is the plaintiffs information. I can't just say "well, she is not correct" there is a whole discovery process and stuff like depositions to do, which will be incredible expensive, easily tens of thousands at least, I have already spent a huge amount of money and not much has even happened yet. This is a very information laden case, just having to explain and cross reference everything cost a lot of money. Because of the number of defendants and other factors, something as simple as watching the docket and other routine stuff has been costly, not to mention research, countless emails and phone calls, I am billed for every second of this. On top of all of this, the plaintiffs lawyer appears to be doing this case for free for her, I could be wrong but that is what it appears to be from my perspective. In my opinion, he may think somehow he will make big money off of this.

The case started out in the northern district of Ohio and the reason it took so long for much to happen is because it took a while for them to serve me. I have a lawyer in Ohio I retained here in ohio and just very recently the case had a change of venue to the southern district of new york, luckily my lawyer in Ohio can practice in New York. I also hired Nancy Wolff because of her experience and knowledge about the stock industry. There was a pre-trial conference on the 6th. the case is starting to really heat up.

Semmick Photo · « **Reply #16 on:** January 08, 2015, 08:37 »

Hey Josh, I have donated $10 USD. I am a little strapped for cash until payday but I figured I wanted to help anyway. Good luck mate, I hope you get a chance to file a counter claim for damages once you get aqcuited by the judge.

bpepz · « **Reply #17 on:** January 08, 2015, 08:38 »

Quote from: roede-orm on January 08, 2015, 03:33

For the future, it will probably be necessary to supplement the MR. It must be signed, the photographer can not be held responsible for the misuse of images. Will donate today.

Thank you man! As far as the supplemental to the MR, that is something I am going to look into after the case is hopefully over. If by a miracle there is money left over I am planning on using to it develop a supplemental release everyone can use.

bpepz · « **Reply #18 on:** January 08, 2015, 08:44 »

Quote from: Semmick Photo on January 08, 2015, 08:37

Hey Josh, I have donated $10 USD. I am a little strapped for cash until payday but I figured I wanted to help anyway. Good luck mate, I hope you get a chance to file a counter claim for damages once you get aqcuited by the judge.

Thank you for your donation!!!

As far as counter claims for damages, it apparently is not so simple. I guess anything alleged in the legal complaint by a plaintiff, even if it is untrue has some kind of legal privilege to protect them for defamation and stuff like that. Do a Google search for "legal complaint privilege" and a bunch of stuff comes up. Also, it is extremely unlikely I will ever get the costs reimbursed even if I win. The reason for this is the case would have to be deemed frivolous, however, the common sense definition and the legal definition of frivolous are two completely different things. Judges are extremely unlikely to rule a case frivolous even in pretty extreme scenarios, it is actually very rare for it to happen in a civil case, so I was pretty depressed when I learned this.

Shelma1 · « **Reply #19 on:** January 08, 2015, 08:48 »

Donated. Best of luck...being dragged through court svcks.

bpepz · « **Reply #20 on:** January 08, 2015, 08:51 »

Quote from: Shelma1 on January 08, 2015, 08:48

Donated. Best of luck...being dragged through court svcks.

Thank you!

bpepz · « **Reply #21 on:** January 08, 2015, 08:52 »

Quote from: VJLoops on January 08, 2015, 03:29

Donated. Good luck Josh!

Thank you!

CommuniCat · « **Reply #22 on:** January 08, 2015, 09:10 »

Donated.

roede-orm · « **Reply #23 on:** January 08, 2015, 09:24 »

Do you have a PayPAL-Account? I don't like spread my card-nr. out in the world, and donate easy and sure via Paypal would be a solution.

bpepz · « **Reply #24 on:** January 08, 2015, 09:27 »

Quote from: roede-orm on January 08, 2015, 09:24

Do you have a PayPAL-Account? I don't like spread my card-nr. out in the world, and donate easy and sure via Paypal would be a solution.

I do have a paypal setup just for this

[email protected]

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Author Topic: Being sued by model in federal court, please read! (Read 50788 times)

bpepz

marthamarks

Semmick Photo

Reef

VJLoops

BaldricksTrousers

roede-orm

Freedom

Sean Locke Photography

brm1949

BaldricksTrousers

nicku

Sean Locke Photography

bpepz

bpepz

bpepz

Semmick Photo

bpepz

bpepz

Shelma1

bpepz

bpepz

CommuniCat

roede-orm

bpepz

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