They're Still Hiding the 'License By Default'

Um, we can't, um, talk too much about this, um, but I guess I can tell you this much.

The objectors are considering hiring a team of retired Kremlinologists to help interpret today's statement by the National Writers Union president and former president (see this morning's prior post, "NWU: You Must Help Us Consummate This Historic Failure!"). We've heard that a "director emeritus" of the CIA is looking for work.

Meanwhile, there's this. The NWU -- like all the associational plaintiffs and named plaintiffs and plaintiffs' lawyers and defendants -- is still hiding the "license by default," the UnSettlement's killer provision.

Prez Colby and former prez Tasini say, "Ignoring the settlement is not in your interest." But much more important is what they don't say. Even if you don't file a claim, for whatever reason (including not just that you're ignoring the settlement but that you didn't understand it or you never knew about it during the short and botched notice window), the defendants are taking away your secondary rights. In perpetuity.

The Colby-Tasini contention that "as in most class action settlements for members of a court-approved class, either you make the choice or the choice will be made for you by default," is specious. This is an unprecedented abuse of the class-action system. And it will not stand.