Kazaa owner Sharman Networks is continuing its bid to have an order against it dropped by an Australian court. The company lodged an application on Thursday asking for leave to appeal on a ruling made last week.
Judge Murray Rutledge Wilcox of the Federal Court of Australia ruled last Thursday that a so-called Anton Piller order against the company, which allowed Australian music industry representatives to raid its Cremoren, Australia, premises earlier this year, should stand.
The material seized during the raid should be held by independent lawyers until access by both parties can be negotiated, Wilcox said in his statement.
Considering the Evidence
Wilcox said at the time that while he recognized that Sharman Networks had cooperated with legal proceedings elsewhere, including in the U.S., and was therefore unlikely to actively destroy records, "it is one thing to expect parties to litigation not to destroy existing evidence, it is another thing to expect them conscientiously to cooperate in the creation and recording of evidence useful to their opponents."
It was also necessary to gain "snapshots" of what is happening on Sharman Networks network at any one time, Wilcox said.
The Anton Piller order, allowing an unexpected raid, was therefore necessary, he said.
Sharman Networks is appealing because Wilcox did not consider many of its arguments, the company says. In particular, it objects to his views on the need to capture transitory material through snapshots of its network. This is an improper use of an Anton Piller order, it says.
No one from the court was immediately available to comment, but a date will now be set to hear the application for leave to appeal, according to Sharman.
