A lawyer for the authors confirmed Thursday that “the authors and other copyright holders filed claims covering more than 92% of the more than 480,000 works included in the settlement.” But objectors argue that attorney compensation should reflect the total number of plaintiffs, not the total amount of the settlement fund.
By urging the court to make “reasonable and fair adjustments” to reduce attorney fees, Story hopes to increase compensation for perpetrators. Offering an example, he noted that “a still generous $70 million payment to attorneys would produce a nearly 25 percent increase in individual plaintiff awards, while attorneys would continue to receive the equivalent of their current maximum rates” for hours worked.
For Story, it also seemed that the lawyers could have obtained greater compensation for the authors, but instead of pursuing “creative options,” they “settled too quickly to maximize” their own compensation.
“If the lawyers were as skilled, brave and brilliant as they profess, and if the Settlement were the ‘home run’ that the lawyer claims it to be, plaintiffs would receive more than this pittance,” Story said.
Ruben Lee, another objecting member of the group, agreed: “I believe the amount offered is insignificant and in no way reflects the full value of the unauthorized use of my work.”
The objectors may not win every fight, but they have apparently persuaded the court to at least consider their vigorous pleas, including warnings that the deal might not survive an appeal if the terms are not reexamined. Notably, their objections came shortly before a new lawsuit was filed by a group of 25 class members who opted out of the settlement. lawsuitwhich shows that Anthropic is not done fighting these claims.
“For the Court to accept the attorneys’ request for nearly a third of a billion dollars while individual plaintiffs settle for a pittance of available compensation and no protection against future abuses is an aberration of civil justice and a slap in the face to all those who worked to publish their works,” Story said. “Such a decision would also encourage the all-too-often stereotype that… plaintiffs in class action lawsuits are merely tools used to obtain Powerball-sized payouts for attorneys.”
