DrunkenBlog

A conversation with Sunny's counsel

I wanted to touch base a bit on what's been going on with Sunny (Desicanuk) over the last while.

To recap, Sunny is one of three named defendants (there are many John Does) Apple is suing for allegedly leaking a beta version of the upcoming Mac OS 10.4 onto the internet. A week ago it came out that one of the three named was able to settle with Apple, and move on to dealing with the criminal charges the lawsuit had created.

Because they've been blurred, it's worth noting that this is an entirely separate situation from Apple's legal actions against ThinkSecret, which is also a separate situation from Apple's legal actions against PowerPage and AppleInsider. I know, someone needs to start a Wiki.

I sat down for an interview with Sunny and the admin of the network where the Tiger beta was leaked, and then a bit later Apple Computer cofounder Steve Wozniak and more than a score of other notables in the Mac world weighed in with their thoughts on the issue.

A client of Summers Rubinstein PC -- a San Francisco law firm specializing in intellectual property and business litigation -- saw the interview and passed it on to someone at Summers Rubinstein, and a few weeks later Sunny officially had representation. The firm agreed to take it on pro bono, which is short for "pro bono publico", which means "for the public good", which basically means they've waived all their fees.

Last week I was able to touch base with Yano Rubinstein (Sunny's counsel) about a few things, and he agreed to answer some questions that I could post publicly, to both fill in some gaps and to keep you as in touch with what's going on as I could.

Why did you decide to represent Sunny?

We choose to represent Sunny because our firm focuses on intellectual property matters, and we believed Sunny was singled out as an example.

It was clear to us that without representation, Sunny could end up not only with a judgment of hundreds of thousands of dollars against him, but could also face criminal charges and possible jail time. We did not feel having Sunny in jail would be a just outcome.

Is this type of work something your firm does a lot of?

Yes, we regularly are involved in Intellectual Property cases involving Patents, Trademarks, Copyrights, Domain Names and Rights of Publicity.

More specifically, are you in the habit of taking on clients who can't afford your fees?

California has a Pro-bono resolution that "urges" all attorney's to provide at least 50 hours of legal services per year without expectation of compensation.

Also, the California Business and Professions Code Section 6068(h) establishes that it is the duty of a lawyer "Never to reject, for any consideration personal to himself or herself, the cause of the defenseless or the oppressed."

As an IP firm, we don't have many defenseless or oppressed. However, we believe Sunny is an exception.

While asking around, I was told several times that Sunny's case had 'already defaulted'. What does that really mean?

When a party has failed to defend against a Complaint, the Plaintiff may request an entry of default. If the default is accepted by the court, the court may find for the Plaintiff on all claims. A defendant typically has twenty days to respond to a Complaint in federal court.

Did Apple request an entry of default?

Apple did not request an entry of default. If a default had been entered, we would have requested that the default be set aside. Given that Sunny had not yet been able to secure legal counsel when the deadline to respond had passed, it would have been reasonable to expect that a court would set aside a default entry.

What would your services have normally cost?

Our services are not cheap. It would be standard for a case such as Sunny's to incur legal fees in excess of $10,000 per month before trial.

What recourse would a normal individual have when faced with a suit like this if a firm such as yours hadn't decided to step in?

Without finding adequate legal representation, an individual in Sunny's position may find himself in a very grim situation. There are legal clinics available for individuals without the means to secure private counsel, however such clinics are often understaffed, underfunded, and unavailable in many areas throughout the U.S.


drunkenbatman Addendum:
It's amusing to me how, when something starts getting lots of hits, everyone just assumes lawyers will be falling all over to help. For a variety of reasons, it just doesn't work that way, especially in a case like this, and their billable rate should give you an idea of just what cases like these can cost an individual.

However, one thing your mind does gravitate towards is the idea that even if a lawyer doesn't get paid, they might be willing to take a case on for the press, whatever form that might take on. I don't believe that that's what's going on here; they aren't issuing press releases, they've just quietly picked up the case and are working behind the scenes.

I've really been struck at the amount of time they've been willing to give to Sunny; answering his questions, making themselves available, and treating him with kindness and honor when no one was really looking. After my conversations with Mr. Rubinstein, and Sunny, it's my real belief they've taken on the case for the exact reasons they gave.

 Posted by drunkenbatman
    April 02, 2005, at 07:36 PM