p2pnet news view Freedom | P2P:- Leading Swedish legal experts are calling for a retrial in The Pirate Bay case, “as new details emerged supporting allegations of conflicts of interest against the presiding judge, Tomas Norström,” says Sveriges Radio (SR), quoted by The Local.

“The copyright protection organisations in which Norström is a member take a standpoint on the issue and actively lobby for tougher legislation within copyright law,” says the story.

Far from being impartial, Norström is a member of pro-copyright groups,” said an earlier SR report, this time picked up by TorrentFreak and, listing  »»»

Swedish Association of Copyright (SFU) РThe judge Tomas Norstr̦m is a member of this discussion forum that holds seminars, debates and releases the Nordic Intellectual Property Law Review. Other members of this outfit? Henrik Pont̩n (Swedish Anti-Piracy Bureau), Monique Wadsted (movie industry lawyer) and Peter Danowsky (IFPI) Рthe latter is also a member of the board of the association.

Swedish Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (SFIR) РThe judge Tomas Norstr̦m sits on the board of this association that works for stronger copyright laws. Last year they held the Nordic Championships in Intellectual Property Rights Process Strategies.

.SE (The Internet Infrastructure Foundation) РTomas Norstr̦m works for the foundation that oversees the .se name domain and advises on domain name disputes. His colleague at the foundation? Monique Wadsted. Wadsted says she`s never met Norstr̦m although they have worked together. [NOTE: Wadsted is a lawyer who acted for the movie industry - Jon.]

The story has Norström declaring, “Every time I accept a case I make an assessment on whether I am part of it or not. But I have not felt that I am biased because of those commitments.”

However, “These memberships automatically make him a member of the international organisations ALAI and AIPPI,” says The Local, adding »»»

The president of AIPPI, Thierry Mollet-Vievill, confirmed in an interview with SR that the group represents “copyright owners and their lawyers” and argued that the law must be followed.

“We try to fight against the infringement of copyright legislation and piracy.”

The chairperson of ALAI (Association littéraire et artistique internationale), Victor Nabhan, confirmed to SR that the group is a lobby organisation.

“When a new law proposal is under consideration ALAI issues a comment. In that sense we are a lobby organisation…We try as far as we can to protect the individual interests of the copyright holder.”

Nabhan confirmed that his views are representative of the association, including its Swedish branch, and that all its members should share them.

According to experts interviewed by SR, many of whom elected to remain anonymous, the new details support arguments in favour of a retrial.

“The confidence in the legal system demands that the appeals court regards this is as a conflict of interest, and that means that the appeals court must order a retrial in the district court,” the story has Eric Bylander, a legal expert at Gothenburg University, telling SR.

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The Local – Pirate Bay judge faces new bias allegations, May 11, 2009
pro-copyright groups – The Pirate Bay trial judge accused of bias,  April 23, 2009
TorrentFreak – Pirate Bay Judge Accused of Bias, Calls for a Retrial, April 23, 2009