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Comment by callmeed | Hacker News Reader

Here's what I don't get: why didn't McM Hell go to an attorney right away? This seems like a no-brainer case of fair use that any competent attorney could tell you in a free consult or less than 2 hours of billable time.

And, yes, the threat letter from Zillow is total BS. But that doesn't mean Zillow "doesn't get it". That's just what attorneys do. I thought everyone knew this.

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"I thought everyone knew this" is a dangerous assumption. Not only are you assuming equal knowledge access but you're also assuming equal legal access. I'd argue the legal system is not equally accessible and knowledge of the system is even less accessible. I think the only safe assumption here is that Kate did _not_ know the proper way to respond to this and asked for help from the community. I would've done the same.

I mistakenly assumed McM Hell was something closer to a business or run by business person(s). As opposed to just a blog run by a single person.

My bad.

Most people don't have the legal background to understand it, or the money to pay for a consult that might not be useful. McMansion Hell posted on twitter asking for help with the next step, because they didn't know what to do with such a threatening letter.

Look at this from their point of view, not yours. Most people have this understanding that lawyers are expensive and Zillow is a big company, it is natural and reasonable to expect that fighting or resisting Zillow is going to be expensive and it is better to shut down first and find out what to do next.

You're also making a huge assumption that even if the lawyers agree it is BS, Zillow would not pursue this matter further, causing them to retain a lawyer that will require money.

>why didn't McM Hell go to an attorney right away?

Seems the current strategy is working out quite nicely, no? Instead of a back and forth on a copyright issue that Zillow expected, they must now come to the defense of its brand.

Probably not something they expected.

Yes, but that's more of a fortunate side-effect.

it won't be the next time.

> the threat letter from Zillow is total BS. But that doesn't mean Zillow "doesn't get it

I'd argue that sending a BS letter is literally not getting it.

> That's just what attorneys do. I thought everyone knew this.

Attorneys waste everyone's time by making demands without any legal basis?

Attorneys waste everyone's time by making demands without any legal basis?

...yes, often?

I'm sure she did. Multiple attorneys reached out to her in the original twitter thread.

Say you get sued. Even if the suit is totally bogus, you've got to spend your time and money fighting it. You have to at least stop and think about whether that is worth it.

The consultation would likely be free, but if she wanted them to do anything it would be a few thousand to retain them. Maybe that's a good chunk of change for her?

The letter was written to freak her out - threatening with CFAA etc. - and it accomplished that well.

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