Irvin Muchnick was just served with the defamation complaint May 13th, so the trial is several months away.
As the court date approaches, we will be posting all public documents relating to the case, and of course provide any major developments.
The case was filed in Maryland Federal Court and is presently titled "Doe v. Muchnick."
Case 1:13-cv-01380-WDQ
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Muchnick Lawsuit Update
In lieu of a restraining order, Irvin Muchnick has agreed to take down many of his posts and redact the name of the minor plaintiffs' names. An ever defiant Muchnick vows to soldier on with his "crusade" against swimming molestation despite the threats from the swimming "goons."
Muchnick will lose this suit and all subsequent suits. He is irresponsible and reckless.
JUSTICE!
Muchnick will lose this suit and all subsequent suits. He is irresponsible and reckless.
JUSTICE!
JUSTICE AFFIRMED
His headlines ALONE are enough for Irvin Muchnick to lose the defamation lawsuit. http://concussioninc.net/?p=7456 No understanding of 1st Amendment. Thinks it's a fortress, not a shield.
Win or lose his defamation lawsuit, defending the legal action will cost Muchnick plenty. Enjoy the bad karma payback for screwing over freelance writers.
It's hard to shut the guy up, but he's on radio silence now.
Win or lose his defamation lawsuit, defending the legal action will cost Muchnick plenty. Enjoy the bad karma payback for screwing over freelance writers.
It's hard to shut the guy up, but he's on radio silence now.
Monday, May 13, 2013
Monday, April 22, 2013
The Mother of All Conflicts of Interest
This is so surreal it almost defies description. The objectors' attorney, Charles Chalmers, now represents the C-class in negotiations for a new Freelance Settlement. The C-class contains approximately 99 per cent of all claims. This brings the phrase "conflict of interest" to a new level.
In other words, the person most responsible for blowing up the original settlement eight years ago now represents the 99 percent of C-class members who were in favor of the original settlement. You can't make this stuff up.
Now, Chalmers has the gall to complain how difficult it is to complete a new settlement because "there are about 30 to 40 separate entities, or more, each with attorneys, that have to approve everything. It might be the most unwieldy class action settlement in history."
Huh? A matter that took four years to negotiate was settled eight years ago, the vast majority of the class members favored the settlement, and now Chalmers complains how difficult it is to reach a final agreement.
And what does he hope to accomplish? It is extremely unlikely that a new settlement would be any more advantageous to freelance writers. After all, after eight years, the defendants really don't have incentive to cut ANY new deal.
Thousands of writers are now at the mercy of angry, failed writer Irvin Muchnick and an old, out-of-touch lawyer.
Who says the legal system is broken.
In other words, the person most responsible for blowing up the original settlement eight years ago now represents the 99 percent of C-class members who were in favor of the original settlement. You can't make this stuff up.
Now, Chalmers has the gall to complain how difficult it is to complete a new settlement because "there are about 30 to 40 separate entities, or more, each with attorneys, that have to approve everything. It might be the most unwieldy class action settlement in history."
Huh? A matter that took four years to negotiate was settled eight years ago, the vast majority of the class members favored the settlement, and now Chalmers complains how difficult it is to reach a final agreement.
And what does he hope to accomplish? It is extremely unlikely that a new settlement would be any more advantageous to freelance writers. After all, after eight years, the defendants really don't have incentive to cut ANY new deal.
Thousands of writers are now at the mercy of angry, failed writer Irvin Muchnick and an old, out-of-touch lawyer.
Who says the legal system is broken.
Friday, February 8, 2013
The Irvin Muchnick Disease
"The destruction of the Freelance Class Action Settlement is my proudest achievement"
---Irvin Muchnick
This is a story how one deranged individual manipulated the legal system and in the process harmed thousands of hard-working writers.
In 2001, Jonathan Tasini prevailed in a landmark U.S. Supreme Court case which concluded that publishers violated freelance writers' copyright protection. The publishers posted and re-sold articles to internet databases without compensating the author.
This ruling left the door open for a class action settlement, which was negotiated and finalized by 2005. Ken Feinberg, universally acclaimed for his mediation of the 2001 World Trade Center claims, oversaw the negotiations. In a common sense framework, those who registered their works received more than those who did not. The settlement was divided into three classes (A, B, and C). It was capped at $18 million, including attorney fees.
There were several fairness hearings in District Court in New York. One person, Irvin Muchnick, was vocal in his opposition to the settlement. Mr. Muchnick convinced nine other claimants to join him in objecting to the settlement. The District Court heard all arguments and dismissed Muchnick's claims.
It is critical to note that the objectors were given the opportunity to opt out of the settlement and pursue litigation on their own. Several hundred writers did just that. Muchnick and the objectors did not.
Citing a myriad of reasons, the objectors appealed to the Court of Appeals, setting off a chain of events that as of February, 2013, has prevented writers from collecting settlement money.
After a lengthy delay, the Court of Appeals did not rule on the merits of the case and instead declared they did not have the jurisdiction to act. That ruling was appealed to the United States Supreme Court, which overturned that opinion and sent the case back to the Court of Appeals. After another long delay, the Court of Appeals, in a 2-1 decision, ruled that the C-class did not have proper representation and remanded the case back to District Court, where the case is currently stalled.
Mr. Muchnick appealed the settlement on numerous grounds. The one he trumpeted was his self-coined "License by Default." In a nonsensical display of illogic, Muchnick claimed the publishers and internet search engines could not take away authors' future rights. The ironic part of the Court of Appeals ruling was the unanimous dismissal of that concept, as the original settlement gave writers the opportunity to receive more money in lieu of future rights to the product.
The one area where Muchnick won a split decision of the Court of Appeals was the C-reduction, which reduced C-class claims in the event the total claims exceeded $18 million. In the panel, two of three judges decided the onus for the capped amount should not fall entirely on the C-class. The court suggested the District Court provide more suitable representation for the C-class.
The matter has been stuck in District Court for more than a year, while the parties presumably negotiate an amended settlement.
Here's the bottom line. The settlement was specifically for freelance writers, who by definition did not receive benefits. It was designed to punish the publishers for unauthorized re-use.
Muchnick had some grandiose scheme to turn freelance payments into some sort of royalty system. Not only is that idea impratical, but it backfired. As a result of the settlement, writers are now required to sign away future rights when the works are originally purchased. So now, not only did the writers receive no money for past infractions, they are prohibited from future compensation. Good job, Irv.
If you read past posts from his blog, it is obvious Muchnick's main objection was the amount of money the lawyers were to receive. His disdain for the welfare of his fellow writers is painfully obvious.
Muchnick has done his damage and has moved on. He's now crusading about concussions in sports and sex scandals in the sport of swimming. He's trying desperately to be an investigative reporter, but is failing miserably. His "concern" in these two areas obviously is phony, and it shows in his biased writing. No one will talk to him about these subjects and he's reduced to reprinting others' posts.
He should not be allowed to just move freely to another subject after causing so much damage to freelancers. If you are a writer and feel just as strongly about this matter, go to his blog (Freelance Rights) and his twitter account (@irvmuch) and voice your opinion.
Here is Irvin Muchnick's public information should you want to let him know how you feel:
Registered through: GoDaddy.com, LLC (http://www.godaddy.com)
Domain Name: CONCUSSIONINC.NET
Created on: 08-Jul-11
Expires on: 08-Jul-15
Last Updated on: 15-Apr-12
Registrant:
Irvin Muchnick
P.O. Box 9629
Berkeley, California 94709
United States
Administrative Contact:
Muchnick, Irvin irvmuch@yahoo.com
P.O. Box 9629
Berkeley, California 94709
United States
510-588-5405
Technical Contact:
Muchnick, Irvin irvmuch@yahoo.com
P.O. Box 9629
Berkeley, California 94709
United States
510-588-5405
Domain servers in listed order:
NS23.DOMAINCONTROL.COM
NS24.DOMAINCONTROL.COM
Please spread the word about this blog.
Thanks for your time.
---Irvin Muchnick
This is a story how one deranged individual manipulated the legal system and in the process harmed thousands of hard-working writers.
In 2001, Jonathan Tasini prevailed in a landmark U.S. Supreme Court case which concluded that publishers violated freelance writers' copyright protection. The publishers posted and re-sold articles to internet databases without compensating the author.
This ruling left the door open for a class action settlement, which was negotiated and finalized by 2005. Ken Feinberg, universally acclaimed for his mediation of the 2001 World Trade Center claims, oversaw the negotiations. In a common sense framework, those who registered their works received more than those who did not. The settlement was divided into three classes (A, B, and C). It was capped at $18 million, including attorney fees.
There were several fairness hearings in District Court in New York. One person, Irvin Muchnick, was vocal in his opposition to the settlement. Mr. Muchnick convinced nine other claimants to join him in objecting to the settlement. The District Court heard all arguments and dismissed Muchnick's claims.
It is critical to note that the objectors were given the opportunity to opt out of the settlement and pursue litigation on their own. Several hundred writers did just that. Muchnick and the objectors did not.
Citing a myriad of reasons, the objectors appealed to the Court of Appeals, setting off a chain of events that as of February, 2013, has prevented writers from collecting settlement money.
After a lengthy delay, the Court of Appeals did not rule on the merits of the case and instead declared they did not have the jurisdiction to act. That ruling was appealed to the United States Supreme Court, which overturned that opinion and sent the case back to the Court of Appeals. After another long delay, the Court of Appeals, in a 2-1 decision, ruled that the C-class did not have proper representation and remanded the case back to District Court, where the case is currently stalled.
Mr. Muchnick appealed the settlement on numerous grounds. The one he trumpeted was his self-coined "License by Default." In a nonsensical display of illogic, Muchnick claimed the publishers and internet search engines could not take away authors' future rights. The ironic part of the Court of Appeals ruling was the unanimous dismissal of that concept, as the original settlement gave writers the opportunity to receive more money in lieu of future rights to the product.
The one area where Muchnick won a split decision of the Court of Appeals was the C-reduction, which reduced C-class claims in the event the total claims exceeded $18 million. In the panel, two of three judges decided the onus for the capped amount should not fall entirely on the C-class. The court suggested the District Court provide more suitable representation for the C-class.
The matter has been stuck in District Court for more than a year, while the parties presumably negotiate an amended settlement.
Here's the bottom line. The settlement was specifically for freelance writers, who by definition did not receive benefits. It was designed to punish the publishers for unauthorized re-use.
Muchnick had some grandiose scheme to turn freelance payments into some sort of royalty system. Not only is that idea impratical, but it backfired. As a result of the settlement, writers are now required to sign away future rights when the works are originally purchased. So now, not only did the writers receive no money for past infractions, they are prohibited from future compensation. Good job, Irv.
If you read past posts from his blog, it is obvious Muchnick's main objection was the amount of money the lawyers were to receive. His disdain for the welfare of his fellow writers is painfully obvious.
Muchnick has done his damage and has moved on. He's now crusading about concussions in sports and sex scandals in the sport of swimming. He's trying desperately to be an investigative reporter, but is failing miserably. His "concern" in these two areas obviously is phony, and it shows in his biased writing. No one will talk to him about these subjects and he's reduced to reprinting others' posts.
He should not be allowed to just move freely to another subject after causing so much damage to freelancers. If you are a writer and feel just as strongly about this matter, go to his blog (Freelance Rights) and his twitter account (@irvmuch) and voice your opinion.
Here is Irvin Muchnick's public information should you want to let him know how you feel:
Registered through: GoDaddy.com, LLC (http://www.godaddy.com)
Domain Name: CONCUSSIONINC.NET
Created on: 08-Jul-11
Expires on: 08-Jul-15
Last Updated on: 15-Apr-12
Registrant:
Irvin Muchnick
P.O. Box 9629
Berkeley, California 94709
United States
Administrative Contact:
Muchnick, Irvin irvmuch@yahoo.com
P.O. Box 9629
Berkeley, California 94709
United States
510-588-5405
Technical Contact:
Muchnick, Irvin irvmuch@yahoo.com
P.O. Box 9629
Berkeley, California 94709
United States
510-588-5405
Domain servers in listed order:
NS23.DOMAINCONTROL.COM
NS24.DOMAINCONTROL.COM
Please spread the word about this blog.
Thanks for your time.
Wednesday, February 6, 2013
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)