zeppelin.pdf

Judge Calls Led Zeppelin Lawsuit Lawyer Unprofessional,Offensive A Pennsylvania federal judge has ordered sanctions against the attorney preparing to sue Led Zeppelin for Stairway to Heaven,claiming that the lawyer behaved in a flagrantly unprofessional and offensive manner over the course of a different case.According to The Hollywood Reporter,Francis Malofiy recently attracted the judges consternation while bringing a lawsuit against Usher and 19 other defendants for copyright infringement.The 10 Best Spirit Songs That Dont Sound Like Stairway to Heaven Malofy represented a songwriter named Dan Marino,who claimed that he had created the basic melody,chord progressions and tempo for the Usher song Bad Girl while working with his former songwriting partners William Guice and Dante Barton,who were also named in the suit.According to Judge Paul Diamonds sanctions memorandum,Malofiy misled Guice into believing that he was only a witness in the suit rather than a defendant,and persuaded Guice to sign an affidavit admitting to elements of the Plaintiffs complaint without representation from a lawyer.Malofiys discussions with Guice are the paradigm of bad faith and intentional misconduct,Judge Diamond wrote,and later concluded,Defendants have shown clearly and convincingly that Attorney Francis Malofiy has acted disgracefully:lying to an unsophisticated,impoverished,unrepresented Defendant,thus convincing that Defendant to expose himself(probably baselessly)to substantial liability.Moreover,the judge says that Malofiy made sexist,abusive remarks during the case,including telling the other lawyer,Dont be a girl about this.He also reportedly declared that Usher has$130 million Im going to take every penny of it,and told someone else involved in the case,Youre like a little kid with your little mouth.As to the copyright infringement lawsuit,the judge did not find that Usher or his fellow defendants acted improperly.In a press release,Malofiy objected to the judges conclusions and stated that he was upfront and honest with Mr.Guice.In the meantime,Malofiy has claimed that Led Zeppelin stole the intro for their 1971 song Stairway to Heaven from Spirits 1968 track Taurus.Malofiy said that he will file a copyright infringement lawsuit and seek an injunction to block the release of the Led Zeppelin IV reissue.The recent sanctions against Malofiy could distract from that pursuit,however.Whether Malofiy should be removed from practice is a question properly answered in another forum,Judge Diamond wrote.