RipoffReport operator Xcentric Ventures LLC won another round in a two-year-long legal battle—this time in post judgement motions—in a mega legal case that has pitted the consumer website RipoffReport.com against a Massachusetts attorney fighting to remove from the website a negative review about him and his law firm.
It all began in 2012, when attorney Richard A. Goren was helping a client business fight RipOffReport to remove a negative review posted by a disgruntled customer. But the attorney found himself a target when another consumer posted a review of him on RipoffReport, which Goren claimed in court was false and defamatory.
In Massachusetts Superior Court, Goren sued the RipoffReport.com review poster for defamation and won. The court then assigned Goren the copyright.
It would be a short-lived victory because the RipoffReport review remained online and the consumer website refused to remove it.
So Goren sued RipoffReport.com and its operator Xcentric for copyright infringement.
Xcentric Ventures, which operates RipoffReport.com, defended its position claiming that when third parties, i.e. consumers, post to RipoffReport, they give Xcentric the irrevocable right to host the reviews. In essence, RipoffReport.com argued that the state court had no right to assign the copyright to Goren.
Xcentric won summary judgment against Goren in March 2015, upholding RipoffReport’s rights and immunities.
Goren tried to resuscitate his lawsuit, filing procedural post-judgment motions seeking to get the summary judgment thrown out so he could then amend his complaint.
But the federal district court in Massachusetts just denied all three of Goren’s motions. The review that Goren has tried to remove from RipoffReport for more than two years remains on RipoffReport.com.
“Goren’s lawsuit attempted to force Xcentric to remove reports from the RipoffReport, using unfounded legal theories regarding copyright and state unfair competition laws, which had no merit against established copyright law and the federal Communications Decency Act,” says Adam Kunz, In-house counsel for RipoffReport.com.
Goren is apparently not giving up. He has filed a notice that he plans to appeal to The First Circuit Court of Appeals.
In the interim, Xcentric plans to go after Goren for attorney’s fees.
CONTACT:
Name: Adam Kunz, In-house Counsel
Company: Xcentric Ventures LLC, operator of RipoffReport.com
Phone: (480) 340=6487
Email:
SOURCE: Xcentric Ventures LLC, operator of RipoffReport.com
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