-
The Resurrection of Trump’s Support for Pete Hegseth - 9 mins ago
-
Woman Orders Flowers for Sister in Hospital—Hysterics Over What Arrives - 17 mins ago
-
Winds drop, chance of rain as fire danger ebbs in Los Angeles - 23 mins ago
-
Should You Vacation in South Korea? Experts Weigh In Amid Political Unrest - 52 mins ago
-
Man Found in Syria Appears to Be Missing American - 53 mins ago
-
Official says L.A. County may defy state order to close juvenile hall - about 1 hour ago
-
Will Joe Biden Pardon Hillary Clinton? Bill Clinton Weighs in - about 1 hour ago
-
Can Psychedelics Help CEOs Boost Their Leadership Skills? - 2 hours ago
-
The UnitedHealthcare killing won’t improve insurance. This would - 2 hours ago
-
Kadyrov Troops Hurt as Drones Strike Military Barracks Deep Inside Russia - 2 hours ago
Aileen Cannon Isn’t Ready to Dismiss Taylor Swift Lawsuit
A copyright infringement case against Taylor Swift could continue after the plaintiff said she served the singer with the lawsuit on Monday.
Kimberly Marasco, a Florida artist, is asking for more than $7 million in damages, alleging that Swift’s songs and music videos have “creative elements” that copy her work without authorization or credit. The lawsuit cites several songs and videos from Swift’s albums Lover, Folklore, Midnights and The Tortured Poets Department.
Swift’s attorneys recently asked the judge presiding over the case, Judge Aileen Cannon, to dismiss the claims against the singer because Marasco had failed to serve the lawsuit in the eight months since it was filed.
Marasco filed an acknowledgment of service on Monday after she issued a summons in the care of Florida’s secretary of state.
Newsweek reached out to Swift’s publicist via email for comment.
The news comes just days after Cannon gave Marasco one last chance to serve Swift.
“Plaintiff is afforded one final opportunity to properly effectuate service of process on Defendant Taylor Swift and file proof thereof on the docket,” Cannon said in a paperless order on Friday.
The order gave Marasco until December 20 to serve the lawsuit and file proof. Cannon said she would dismiss the claims against Swift if the deadline were not met.
Marasco is representing herself in the case. Neama Rahmani, a former federal prosecutor and the president of West Coast Trial Lawyers, explained that it is not unusual for individuals representing themselves to experience difficulties with service.
“It’s sometimes hard for plaintiffs who are unrepresented to comply with procedural formalities,” Rahmani told Newsweek. “They don’t have access to process servers and investigators like lawyers do.”
He said that when an individual attempts to serve an entity, such as a corporation, the service is sometimes done through the secretary of state.
“Entities, corporations, they’re not living beings,” Rahmani said. “You have to serve an individual, and that individual is identified through the secretary of state. But that’s still not going to suffice to serve Taylor Swift personally.”
Rahmani said Swift needs to be served personally or using another legally permissible method. He said the lawsuit could be dismissed on December 20 if the court does not accept the acknowledgment of service.
“I think it’s likely that Cannon is going to dismiss the lawsuit on that day if service isn’t effective,” Rahmani said.
If the lawsuit is dismissed, it will likely be without prejudice, he said. This means that Marasco could refile the lawsuit in the future.
Do you have a story Newsweek should be covering? Do you have any questions about this story? Contact LiveNews@newsweek.com.
Source link