Pirate Bay Judge Accused of Bias, Calls for a Retrial

[DaBees-Knees]

http://torrentfreak.com/pirate-bay-lawyer-is-biased-calls-for-a-retrial-090423/

One of the biggest cases in file-sharing history ended last week with The Pirate Bay Four sentenced to huge fines and jail time. Today it is revealed that far from being impartial, the judge in the case is a member of pro-copyright lobby groups - along with Henrik Pontén, Monique Wadsted and Peter Danowsky. There are loud calls for a retrial. It’s been almost a week since the verdicts of one year in prison and heavy financial damages were passed against the four accused in the Pirate Bay trial. The sentence seemed surprisingly tough to many analysts, with the court chosing to judge on intent only, dismissing all technical evidence. But did The Pirate Bay Four receive a fair trial? Today, an event on Swedish national radio SR threw everything in to doubt - and it’s barely believable, like something straight out of Hollywood. The copyright industry likes to have the outcome of processes clear before engaging them so it’s perhaps unsurprising that SR today revealed that the judge Tomas Norström is in league with it on many fronts. The judge has several engagements - together with the prosecution lawyers for the movie and music industries. Swedish Association of Copyright (SFU) - The judge Tomas Norström is a member of this discussion forum that holds seminars, debates and releases the Nordic Intellectual Property Law Review. Other members of this outfit? Henrik Pontén (Swedish Anti-Piracy Bureau), Monique Wadsted (movie industry lawyer) and Peter Danowsky (IFPI) - the latter is also a member of the board of the association. Swedish Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (SFIR) - The judge Tomas Norström sits on the board of this association that works for stronger copyright laws. Last year they held the Nordic Championships in Intellectual Property Rights Process Strategies. .SE (The Internet Infrastructure Foundation) - Tomas Norström works for the foundation that oversees the .se name domain and advises on domain name disputes. His colleague at the foundation? Monique Wadsted. There are several renowned lawyers and judicial commentators that are attacking Tomas Norström’s decision to take the case, in spite of having a clear conflict of interest. During the trial it was the judge, Tomas Norström, that was responsible for ensuring that the trial was fair and that the lay judges did not act in their own interests. “I wouldn’t have taken the case”, says former judicial ombudsman Rune Lavin. “It’s very obvious that he never should have taken that case”, added a law professor that wishes to stay anonymous. “If the lawyers [for the defense] act on this immediately, this could mean a re-trial,” says lawyer Leif Silbersky. And the judge himself? “Every time I accept a case I make an assessment on whether I am part of it or not. But I have not felt that I am biased because of those commitments,” says Tomas Norström. Previously one of the original lay judges in the case had to step down when his involvement in a music rights group became known. It’s anyone’s guess why the judge didn’t think the same should apply to him. Whether or not Tomas Norström allowed his personal interests to get in the way of a fair verdict is open for debate, but there can’t be an intelligent human being reading this news that doesn’t feel that it would’ve been better for everyone if he simply backed away from this case and let someone else take over. He has compromised the entire case and verdict.

This is a breaking news story, check back for updates.

[Trestor]

It's time to remember the old adage: Justice must not only be done, but must be seen to be done. Even if this judge was impartial, he can't be seen to be so.

[..Ñøßߥ..]

You just couldn't write this stuff, its totally amazing i am finding it quite hard to take it all in. I always suspected there was an unknown factor, i mean why else would a judge make the ruling he did when the prosecution made such a piss poor case?  I wonder what other revelations will appear, it wouldn't surprise me if it turns out the judge was on a nice little earner from his copyright activities, comon folks whos prepared to give odds on it?