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----- Original Message -----
From: Harro Hieronimus <Harro.Hieronimus at t-online.de>
To: rainbowfish <rainbowfish at pcug.org.au>
Sent: Tuesday, July 31, 2001 5:17 AM
Subject: [RML] OT but important
> I received this news. It may be interesting for some of you.
>
> Harro
>
> A group of aqurium hobbyists who frequent the Internet
> Aquatic Plant
> Digest have been sued in Federal court for $15,000,000
> by Robert Novak
> d/b/a petswarehouse.com. The lawsuit was filed in the
> U.S. District
> Court
> for the Eastern District of New York. All of the
> defendants reside
> outside of New York. The lawsuit involves allegations of defamation for
> certain messages that were posted to the Aquatic Plant Digest.
> A number of the named defendants have no liability
> insurance which will
> cover this lawsuit. As New York is one of the most
> expensive
> jurisdictions for handling litigation, a special
> defense fund is
> being set up to help defray the legal expenses
> involved in the lawsuit.
> It is estimated that preliminary legal expenses will
> run about $15,000
> for the group. If the case proceeds to trial
> attorney's fees and
> expenses will run upwards of $50,000.
>
> To date a number of fellow aquarists who are also attorneys have
volunteered
> their time on a pro bono basis. The defendants will still need to retain
> local counsel to defend them in the lawsuit.
> This is a special request for financial assistance to
> aid in the
> defense
> of this lawsuit. All contributions are important no
> matter how large or
> small. If you would like to contribute to the defense
> fund please send
> your monetary contribution (check, money order or bank
> draft), payable
> to John Benn, Trust Account, to the law offices of
> John R. Benn &
> Associates, 104 West Third Street, Sheffield, AL
> 35660. All
> contributions
> will be acknowledged. A special web page listing all
> contributors by
> name or initials will be established shortly. Your
> contribution may
> remain anonymous; if that is your choice, please note
> it along with
> your
> contribution.
>
> If you wish to contribute by credit card or PayPal
> please visit the web
> site at http://www.paypal.com The email ID for
> contributions is
> jbenn at jblaw.org
>
> In the event that contributions exceed the legal
> expenses (everyone
> hopes
> for an early dismissal of the lawsuit) any unused
> funds will be
> submitted
> as a donation to the World Wildlife Fund.
>
> If you are interested in learning more about this
> lawsuit, the
> individual
> aquarists who have been sued, or the latest litigation
> news, please
> visit
> CompuServe's Aquaria/Fish Forum at URL
> http://go.compuserve.com/fishnet.
> If you are interested in contributing any professional
> services to the
> defense effort, please contact John Benn at
> JBenn at jblaw.org.
>
> Please feel free to distribute this notice to other aquarists, hobbyists,
> pet lovers and all those you think feel strongly about defending the
issues
> at stake. On behalf of the defendants in this lawsuit, I will express our
> collective appreciation for your contributions.
> John Benn
> JBenn at jblaw.org
>
>
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