Court lets Authors Guild, attorney weigh in on Apple e-books case

As U.S. District Judge Denise Cote prepares to issue a verdict on the Department of Justice’s proposed e-book pricing settlement with three publishers, she has granted two parties that oppose the settlement — the Authors Guild and attorney and licensing expert Bob Kohn — permission to weigh in as amici curiae, or “friends of the court.” Judge Cote previously granted Barnes & Noble and the American Booksellers Association, which also oppose the settlement, permission to file an amicus brief. Judge Cote has now decided to accept the entirety of a brief that the Authors Guild proposed on August 15. However, she is limiting Kohn’s submission to five pages. He had submitted a 55-page brief and will have to file a new, five-page one by September 4 in order for it to be accepted by the Court.