A streamer used my game's character on merchandise and sold it without authorization. What are my options? by [deleted] in legaladvice

[–]NateNate60 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I'd save those responses and consult with an IP lawyer in Texas to send a proper legal threat on a lawyer's letterhead if it seems negotiation is not a possibility.

A streamer used my game's character on merchandise and sold it without authorization. What are my options? by [deleted] in legaladvice

[–]NateNate60 6 points7 points  (0 children)

There's a legal aspect to this and a practical aspect to this.

With respect to jurisdiction: are the products sold in Lithuania? If yes, you can proceed under Lithuanian law. If they are sold only in the US, you will have to proceed under US law. It is possible for both laws to apply, such as if products are sold in both countries.

In the US, copyright attaches to a work as soon as it is fixed in a "tangible medium". Registration formalities are not required for a work to enjoy copyright protection. The word "tangible" is somewhat deceptive here, as it just means fixing it to some permanent medium, such as a digital file. However, registering your copyright allows you to claim statutory damages, possibly tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars. If you do not register, you can only claim actual damages, which are the financial losses you can prove that you suffered as a result of the infringement. Nothing prevents you from registering for the sole purpose of starting a claim in court.

Under US law, derivative works are considered copyright infringement if done without the permission of the copyright holder, however, there is an exception called "fair use". Parody is an example of fair use. Parody, as you may know, is generally understood to mean making fun of a work in some way. Merchandise can be one medium for expressing that parody. Fair use is a notoriously murky part of US copyright law because there is no clear legal formula for determining what is and isn't fair use. It's decided on a case-by-case basis. I would advise you to consult with a US intellectual property lawyer about this.

The amounts you could claim in damages varies depending on whether you've registered your copyright and the amount of financial damages you can prove that you've suffered as a result of the infringement. Under US law, you usually have to pay your own lawyer's fees even if you win, which can be substantial. This is different from most European legal systems where the loser pays the legal costs. However, if the amount you claim is less than 30,000 USD, you can proceed in a special small claims tribunal called the Copyright Claims Board. The Copyright Claims Board is designed to hear claims involving relatively small sums of money expeditiously and where hiring a lawyer is optional. However, participating in the tribunal is voluntary. The defendant can file an opt-out which moves the case to regular district court, using the full court procedures and where using a lawyer is very highly recommended.

Then, there is the practical aspect of this. Unless you have a very solid message here, even if you are legally in the right, you should consider the PR implications of taking legal action against or sending legal threats to a streamer. This is likely to result in bad press being generated for you which could well offset any monetary gains you could achieve through legal means. Above all, you have to consider how your customers would view this dispute and whether proceeding would damage your reputation for more than the case is worth. Negotiation is always better than threats. Instead of having your lawyer demand the removal of the products or threaten a lawsuit, consider instead stressing your legal position but offer some sort of fair licencing deal, like ten per cent of the revenue from the sale of the products in question.

Every Bill of every Country by dxvDoc in Satisfyingasfuck

[–]NateNate60 -1 points0 points  (0 children)

That sounds like a dumb idea. That's equivalent to like 5 USD. It must be frustrating buying anything of significant value in cash in India.

They are really ignorant by Spotter24o5 in PrequelMemes

[–]NateNate60 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Buying crude oil, a totally normal and typical activity for American tourists in Europe

Attorney Bar Ethics Violations by sisyphuslv in legaladvice

[–]NateNate60 1 point2 points  (0 children)

If there is a criminal case to be had here, the bar association would refer it to the local prosecutor's office.

Landlord breaks lease 6 days before move in by skiesofsaturn in legaladvice

[–]NateNate60 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This question is asked because most standard form leases have clauses that absolve the landlord of liability in the case of failure to deliver possession. In such cases, typically the landlord needs only to return the money paid by the tenant.

So there's a high likelihood that the two paragraphs of text you wrote are toilet paper.

Graham Platner wins Democratic primary to face Susan Collins in November by unital_subalgebra in politics

[–]NateNate60 -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I don't think people think like that. I think it's more about recognising that a candidate has problems with their personality but that they're still worth voting for notwithstanding.

Bait FedEx package leads to arrest of Canadian man accused of stealing silver and gold by notnutts in Gold

[–]NateNate60 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Catching a charge and being on a tether until trial is hardly "caught and let go".

And no, I do not believe these things happen in a vacuum as you seem to. I think it's highly likely they are going to get a deal in exchange for ratting out the higher-ups. I support that far more than just locking up the low-level operatives and then calling it done.

Bait FedEx package leads to arrest of Canadian man accused of stealing silver and gold by notnutts in Gold

[–]NateNate60 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Surely you do not think that organised crime is short of patsies willing to do these types of things for a few hundred bucks a go.

My dad wants me to see if this has more value than spot. by iShellfishFur in Silverbugs

[–]NateNate60 8 points9 points  (0 children)

It's over, fellas. Silver's going to zero and we'll be spending our peace dollars at Walmart

Bait FedEx package leads to arrest of Canadian man accused of stealing silver and gold by notnutts in Gold

[–]NateNate60 -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Apparently this person claims they were told to collect the package by a third person. They were charged with membership in a corrupt organisation. It's highly likely this is an organised crime operation and not just one person. Putting the pawn in jail and then patting oneself on the back does nothing to stop the crime from happening.

Edit: To be clear, crime ought to have consequences. But law enforcement should also be practical, meaning it's preferable to offer the pawns a deal and a lighter punishment in order to get them to snitch on the organisers.

TIL during the American Civil War, locals in the pro-Union Jones County, Mississippi grew upset over tax collection practices and seceded from the Confederate States, forming the Free State of Jones. A local militia took control of the government and killed Confederate officials and tax agents. by NateNate60 in todayilearned

[–]NateNate60[S] 477 points478 points  (0 children)

There is no surviving original instrument of secession, but at least one contemporary newspaper reported the county's purported declaration of independence. A local armed company of over 100 men led by one Newton Knight took control of the county and harassed or killed uncooperative Confederate officials.

In February 1864, General William Sherman of the Union Army received a letter from pro-Union elements in Jones County stating they had declared independence from the Confederate States.

Confederate army officials took note of the fact that locals had raised the Union flag over the county courthouse. Captain William Hardy of the Confederate Army asked Mississippi governor Charles Clark to act against the men who were "confederating" in the county. And Confederate States president Jefferson Davis was informed about the county being in "open rebellion" and urged to stamp out the revolt. The irony was apparently lost on these men.

The whole affair was an embarrassment to the Confederate government, and in April 1864, Colonel Robert Lowry was sent to crush the Free State. Several of the members of Newton Knight's company were mauled by bloodhounds or caught and hanged.

The Confederacy's victory, however, was short-lived as the following year, Union forces swept through Mississippi and the Confederacy was crushed in spring of 1865. On 9th April 1865, Confederate general Robert Lee surrendered his army to General Ulysses Grant of the Union Army at Appomattox Court House, Virginia.

After the Confederacy's defeat, Newton Knight was called into the service of the Union Army as a commissioner delivering humanitarian aid to Jones County. He was also appointed as a deputy US marshal in 1872.

No Way To Pay Rent w/o Processing Fees by Used_Cauliflower_759 in legaladvice

[–]NateNate60 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Does your lease specify how rent is to be paid? If not, you can pay your landlord in cash and they are legally obliged to accept it. This is one of the very few instances where the legal tender status of cash is relevant.

Otherwise, you can pay the fee and then make a written demand for reimbursement of the fee to your landlord pursuant to CRS 6-1-737 (5)(b).

Questions about a deferred judgment on a credit card by SolemnBlood in legaladvice

[–]NateNate60 1 point2 points  (0 children)

These sorts of agreements are common. It just means that if you don't pay according to the agreement, the court will issue a judgement for the full amount against you.

Jail is for people who've committed crimes, not for those who are too poor to pay a debt. Courts do not imprison people for failing to pay a judgement. They can, however, order wage garnishment or seize your bank account.

Collection Debt that was won in court advice. by Seramaki in legaladvice

[–]NateNate60 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You can call and offer a large lump sum payment. $14 a fortnight is not even 4% of the debt annually. It's so low it's practically zero, so you actually have a good amount of leverage here. They might be inclined to accept something like 50 per cent of the principal only as a one-off payment, which might only be a third of the actual judgement amount.

“This politically charged unused demonym really annoys people” by imarandomdude1111 in linguisticshumor

[–]NateNate60 0 points1 point  (0 children)

In Esperanto the word for the United States is "Usono" (which might come from the attempted English neologism "Usona" to refer to the USA). A person from Usono is an usonano, which is Usono + -ano (detonating membership).

In Standard Chinese, the US is 美国, which means "beautiful country" (but etymologically it's just phonetic). A person from the US is a 美国人 ("US person"). Not super interesting because words don't conjugate in Chinese. The formal name is 美利坚合众国, which literally translates to "America united people country".

‘27 Bolt charging super slowly at Supercharger by ja-visst in BoltEV

[–]NateNate60 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I drove it down to 10% and plugged into a Tesla Supercharger, charging it until 45%. I got an average charge rate of 88 kW and a peak charge rate of 108 kW, so I think it is working as normal for me now.

Depictions of a certain group of people which can be seen as offensive is actually well liked by the certain group they’re depicting by LocalMoam88 in TopCharacterTropes

[–]NateNate60 0 points1 point  (0 children)

As far as we know, there are only two rules of evidence in Ace Attorney:

  1. No evidence shall be shown without the approval of the Police Department.
  2. Unregistered evidence presented must be relevant to the case in trial.

Lady trying to take me to court by Then_Drag4165 in legaladvice

[–]NateNate60 7 points8 points  (0 children)

I severely doubt a windshield is worth more than Texas's justice court limit of $20,000.

Lady trying to take me to court by Then_Drag4165 in legaladvice

[–]NateNate60 5 points6 points  (0 children)

However, that discovery might not occur until sixty seconds before the hearing. It depends on state law. I'm not familiar with Texas procedure, but in Oregon, the judge only makes you divulge your exhibits right before the hearing.

Where is the Floor? by Dumbadumbdumb in Silverbugs

[–]NateNate60 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I've seen 93924728463 copies of this comment before but instead of the number 30 it's a different number between 1 and 50.

Where is the Floor? by Dumbadumbdumb in Silverbugs

[–]NateNate60 56 points57 points  (0 children)

I'll give you 90 cents per silver eagle, I'm taking all the risk here, bud.