Bait Productions Pty. Ltd. v. John Does

An attorney by the name of Richard E. Fee of Fee & Jeffries PA has filed more than a handful of lawsuits in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida.

The Plaintiff in this case is Bait Productions Pty. Ltd. and these (now fourteen) cases target on average about 50 people at a time.  As of today's date, Bait Productions Pty. Ltd. appears to have filed 14 cases, and are therefore targeting close to 500 or 600 people.  This means that roughly 100 or 150 innocent internet subscribers will be targeted in these cases.

Some of the the case numbers are listed here:

8:12-cv-02464-VMC-MAP
8:12-cv-02470-JDW-EAJ
8:12-cv-02468-JSM-MAP
8:12-cv-02466-MSS-MAP
3:12-cv-01205-MMH-JBT
6:12-cv-01637-GAP-DAB
8:12-cv-02556-MSS-TGW
8:12-cv-02555-JDW-TBM
8:12-cv-02554-MSS-TGW

My sense of humor means I can't help but point out the two parts of these cases which are naturally funny.  First of all, in the movie Dragnet (1987) starring Tom Hanks and Dan Aykroyd there was a pornography company named Bait.  Dabney Coleman played the part of a Satan worshipping pornographer named Jerry Caesar who ran the company that produced Bait magazines.  The portrayal of a rich pornographer in his mansion by this star of Short Time is how I like to think they all live.   Notice how Dabney Coleman is the victim of a crime, just like pornographers who have their content stolen online.

The second part of the cases which is naturally ironic is the term "Bait" which of course is what is happening in these cases.   People are being baited, and whether they are guilty of copyright infringement or not, people will be extorted for larger amounts than are fair and equitable, or in the case of the innocent internet subscriber, simply extorted.  

Bait Productions appears to be an Australian company and to have made a movie called "Bait".  They have had a registration in Australia since 2010.   I have not seen much movement on these cases at this point, but it is certain that the demands and notices from the ISP's will be coming soon.   Just in time for Christmas.  Ho ho ho.    http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1438173/

From IMDB :A freak tsunami traps shoppers at a coastal Australian supermarket inside the building - along with a 12-foot Great White Shark.  4

5 Stars.

As always, my website www.syfert.com contains the FAQ which is still relevant to all John Doe cases. 

Comcast Granted Interlocutory Appeal in Nationwide Jurisdiction ISP Subscriber Information Case

It is a rarity among the federal courts for an interlocutory appeal to be granted in an issue regarding early discovery, however, it appears that Comcast has been granted an appeal as to the constitutional issues regarding jurisdiction and joinder.  

It should be noted that Comcast must have put up a substantial fight to get Judge Howell to grant an interlocutory appeal on these two issues, and attorneys from Comcast believe they will have some measure of success at the appellate level that they have been unable to achieve in the District court.  

http://ia600806.us.archive.org/25/items/gov.uscourts.dcd.152214/gov.uscourts.dcd.152214.46.0.pdf

The order by Judge Beryl Howell is located in the link above.

Comcast lawyers will be arguing the points originally raised in my Motion to Quash and Motion to Dismiss forms that I posted nearly two years ago, but with decidedly more elaboration, I hope.

We may soon have a ruling from an appellate court regarding jurisdiction and joinder at the "John Doe" level of the bittorrent lawsuits.