Riding the wind of rebirth

Sure enough, Lewis said amiably: "In our country's legal disputes, precedents often form the key basis. It is understandable that when we encounter new forms of cases, we rely on experience and conscience, rather than just rigidly seeking legal dogma."

“Therefore, it is reasonable for the Practitioners Association to regard the Music Forum as a music industry practitioner based on the legal principle of equal rights and obligations and the actual scope of the forum. Then, further, I think it is also reasonable for the association to make corresponding rights demands on the forum on behalf of the majority of practitioners. Mr. Huang, do you have any other objections?”

"Of course there is more." Tony Huang said: "If according to what the judge said, our Alliance Forum should be one of the music practitioners, then the Practitioners Association has seriously neglected its duties!"

"Since the establishment of the Union Music Forum, the association has never given any guidance to the music forum, even though the forum has had a huge impact on the industry and even though the digital music charts are now a chart that major radio and television stations attach great importance to."

"As the other party's lawyers have emphasized, ensuring equality and fairness in rights and obligations within the industry, ensuring the healthy development of the music industry, and ensuring smooth communication, publicity and coordination with the outside world are the cornerstones of the industry and one of the obligations of the North American Music Practitioners Association. So I would like to ask a question," Tony Huang said, "without the guidance of the North American Music Practitioners Association, didn't our forum do these things?"

Seeing that Malmut wanted to speak, Tony Huang quickly took over: "Dear Judge Lewis, I would like to provide you with a set of data to show that the music forum is developing healthily and vigorously. Without the guidance of the association, the forum has attracted more than 200 record companies, more than 160,000 freelance creators, and more than 8 million music fans through its own management and development."

"It is quite ironic that two years after the establishment of the Digital Alliance, this figure has already approached the number of members of the Practitioners Association, which has been established for decades. Judging from the trend curve of development, by this time next year, the number of registered creators and creative companies will definitely exceed the number of association members."

"The more than 8 million registered fans fully demonstrate the importance of the forum in the hearts of the fans, which is what the industry association has been missing."

“Since the Music Forum has done everything the Practitioners Association requires on its own, and even done better than the Association, is it really necessary to let a new, booming, excellent, and efficient system be managed by an old, backward, low-quality and inefficient association?”

Truney was furious and slammed his fist on the table. He was about to get angry, but was stopped by Malmut: "Judge Lewis, we strongly protest against the slander imposed by the opposing lawyer!"

"The protest is established." Lewis glared at Tony Huang and said, "Mr. Huang, please be careful with your wording. Today is a mediation, not a litigation battlefield where you can show off your eloquence."

"Okay, Judge Lewis, I take back the three adjectives I used against the association." Tony Huang bowed slightly to Lewis: "But apart from those three controversial contrasting words, the rest of my statements are all facts."

"Judge Lewis, the so-called facts listed by the opposing lawyers are just some data. In addition to showing its rapid development, these data actually show another huge flaw, which is risk." Malmut said: "Benign development is orderly, continuous, predictable, and has strong risk resistance, just like what the Practitioners Association has shown for decades, especially after Mr. Truney became the president."

"We have certainly seen the rapid development of the music forum and acknowledge its influence, but it is precisely because of this that we are increasingly worried." Malmut said: "Dear Judge Lewis, the reason why the forum has such a great influence is that it uses the tool of the information age - the Internet." "We can understand the Internet tool as an amplifier. Whether it is the amount of information, the speed of dissemination, the fermentation of public opinion, etc., all have their energy multiplied through it. However, we should also see that since it is an amplifier, it will not only enhance the good side without enhancing the bad side."

"This place is not far from Wall Street, and there are too many examples of companies that rose quickly and fell quickly. Therefore, we think it is completely untenable and illogical for the other party to use its rapid development as an excuse to evade supervision."

The debate between the two sides was very exciting from the beginning, and they were tit-for-tat and fought for every inch of ground. They were still a long way from discussing specific issues. Just on the legitimacy of whether the Practitioners Association could exercise guidance over the forum, Tony Huang launched wave after wave of attacks.

But Malmut was also very good. Tony Huang's tactics were unexpected and intended to interfere, but Malmut relied on his many years of experience in this industry to counter each move. Even if Tony Huang produced detailed data, Malmut could interrupt his logical relationship with just a few words and make the offensive disappear invisibly.

Lewis sided with the Practitioners Association in several key decisions, such as recognizing that music forums have corresponding rights and obligations in the music industry, recognizing that music forums can also be regarded as closely related parties like record companies and practitioners, and even constitute "employment facts".

So Tony Huang found another direction, that is, since the music forum can be regarded as having the "fact of practicing", the Practitioners Association has huge management negligence and serious procedural errors.

For example, the alliance has not been notified that it should join the practitioners' association, and the association has never sent anyone to explain and communicate, nor has it ever informed the alliance of its rights and obligations within the association's management framework. Now it suddenly declares its management and guidance rights and raises disputes at the legal level. This is very unreasonable.

This is actually also a sharp spear. In the U.S. legal system, procedural correctness is as important as the actual facts of the case. In history, there have been countless major cases that were obviously settled, but lawyers found evidence of incorrect judicial procedures, and therefore listed important evidence as unreliable, and then turned the tables.

However, Malmut still countered the move and once again brought out the charter of the Practitioners Association, stating that the jurisdiction of the Practitioners Association comes from the authorization of music practitioners and that the represented party does not necessarily need to be a member of the association.

In other words, regardless of whether the agent is a member of the association or not, as long as they are engaged in the music industry, or anyone whose rights have been infringed due to the music industry, the practitioners association can intervene after obtaining authorization.

Malmut also pointed out that most of the record companies that illegally exploited the interests of their employees are not only not members of the association, but also hate the association to the core. They have always been the targets of the association's struggle. The Alliance Forum's current resistance and opposition to the association is very similar to the past actions of these record companies and is quite suspicious.

Now it was Tony Huang's turn to protest. (End of this chapter)