Porn Lawyer’s Actions A Dirty Shame

The United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals recently upheld a pretty hefty sanctions award that a trial court levied against the lawyer for porn film producer Mick Haig. The lawyer’s crime? Let’s call it “premature service.” Haig filed a copyright infringement suit against 670 unnamed defendants who allegedly illegally downloaded one of Haig’s masterpieces. Haig asked the court to allow him to conduct expedited discovery. The court did not initially grant the motion, but did direct Haig to send preservation notices to the Internet Service Providers whom the John Doe defendants used to access the material. The court also appointed counsel for the Doe defendants, who immediately opposed the motion to expedite. Haig apparently decided to give up the fight and dismissed the suit. Just before Haig dropped the suit, some of the Doe defendants contacted the court appointed attorneys to report that some ISPs had received subpoenas from Haig. The defendants were concerned that the ISPs might have complied with the subpoenas and identified the defendants. The court came down hard on Haig’s lawyer. Finding that he’d blatantly violated the court’s order and the Federal Rules with “staggering chutzpah” (editor’s note – I plan to use that phrase a lot from now on), the court ordered him to pay $10,000 in sanctions and the defendants’ attorney fees, which totaled $22,000. Apparently, Haig’s lawyer never heard that line about patience being a virtue.