Pryor Cashman Partner James G. Sammataro, co-chair of the firm's Media + Entertainment Group, asked for sanctions against Bang Energy on behalf of client Universal Music Group (UMG) in trial coverage that appeared in Law360 and Complete Music Update (CMU).
In "UMG Wants Bang Energy Sanctioned For Deleting Videos," Law360 notes that James said Bang Energy deleted social media videos that were at issue in the trial:
In a hearing in Fort Lauderdale before U.S. Magistrate Judge Patrick Hunt, UMG's attorney James Sammataro said Vital Pharmaceuticals, which does business as Bang Energy, concealed the videos in question — and the fact that many had been deleted — for months to allow critical deadlines in the litigation to pass.
Sammataro, who also represents Sony Music Entertainment in another infringement suit against Bang in the same court, said that if not for the videos using UMG-owned music turning up in that suit, he never would have learned of their existence.
"The lack of candor is shocking," Sammataro said. "It is the very worst of civil behavior. They hid, they concealed and tried to get away with it. Had there not been a sister case, they probably would've gotten away with it."
CMU's coverage, "Universal Music wants Bang sanctioned over deleted TikTok videos," similarly noted James' frustration as he "criticised Bang's general conduct in relation to this entire legal battle, before adding of Manion's proposal that a separate lawsuit be filed for the missing videos: 'That's my remedy? I get to go relive that experience again? And how do you produce a lawsuit when the evidence is already gone?'"
James is joined by Counsel Brendan S. Everman and Associate Tyler J. Rauh in representing UMG.
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