On November 20, 2002, I filed
a lawsuit against the Paul Kopeikin Gallery, Inc.,
of Los Angeles, for the amount of $5,461.00. I did
this after having exhausted any other possibility
for negotation, subsequent to fruitless attempts to
pursue this through Kopeikin's professional organization,
the Association of International Photography Art Dealers
(AIPAD), and my own, the National Writers Union (NWU).
Kopeikin rejected out of hand all of these efforts,
stating both directly and through his attorney that
if I wanted satisfaction I'd have to take him to court.
Which I have now done. The cause
of action is the defendant's unauthorized use of my
business property -- to wit, my writings, illegally
posted at defendant's website for the purpose of promoting
his commercial enterprise and hawking his merchandise.
On Friday, February 7, 2003,
at 1 p.m., the process for this suit was served on
Paul Kopeikin himself at his booth -- booth #212 --
at The Photo Show, the annual expo of the Association
of International Photography Art Dealers (AIPAD),
held as usual at the New York Hilton. It was served
on him by John Hayes, a Staten Island-based attorney,
acting on my behalf in accordance with the law. The
affidavit of service was filed with the court on February
13, 2003. Under New York State law, because this summons
was served on him personally, Kopeikin has 20 days
from the date of service (that is, until February
27th) to respond. The court is the Civil Court of
the City of New York, County of Richmond, not far
from where I live here on Staten Island.
For a synopsis of the situation
and other pertinent material, click
here. You'll also find the original post, along
with subsequent responses to this matter from members
of the U. S. division of the International Association
of Critics of Art (AICA-USA), in the "Advocacy/Action"
section of the AICA USA website, www.aicausa.org.
Updates will be posted both at that site and here
as the case unfolds.
-- A. D. C.
February 14, 2003
