🐱 Alt-right “comedian” asked his fans to sue Patreon. It backfired

https://www.dailydot.com/debug/patreon-suing-owen-benjamin-fans/

Owen Benjamin has managed to get 72 of his fans sued by Patreon.



Last October, Patreon banned Benjamin, an alt-right commentator and self-styled “comedian”, for violating its policies against hate speech.


The alt-right is a loose collection of conservatives that harbor white supremacists.
Patreon’s ban came in the midst of a flurry of other platforms kicking him off as well.
Benjamin has been banned by YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, for anti-Semitic and other hate speech. Earlier this year, the Daily Dot reported that he had tried to sneak back onto YouTube and Twitter, got caught, and summarily booted again.
According to court documents, Benjamin subsequently filed a $2.2 million claim against Patreon for banning him. He later upped his demand to $3.5 million.


He also got 100 of his fans, also known as “bears,” to file separate, identical claims against Patreon for kicking him off the platform.
Court records state that Benjamin used the multitude of individual claims, all of which were filed by his lawyers, as leverage to attempt to convince Patreon to settle. It refused.
Now Patreon is suing 72 of his fans.
“This lawsuit is about keeping hate speech off of Patreon,” the company told the Daily Dot via email. “We won’t allow former users to extort Patreon, and are moving these frivolous claims to court where they belong.”


Unlike the prior claims, the suit against Benjamin’s fans is filed in California state court.
Patreon’s previous terms of service required claims to be submitted to arbitration, like Benjamin’s $3.5 million cause of action. An update to its terms of service that went into effect on Jan. 1 both prohibits users from filing claims based on the platform kicking off someone else and requires any who do so to pay the company’s attorney’s fees and costs, court documents state.
Benjamin’s fans’ claims against Patreon were filed on Jan. 6, according to court documents.
Thus, if Patreon wins the suit, Benjamin’s fans could be on the hook for a significant sum, which may negatively impact their ability to chip in for the $1.5 million ranch in northern Idaho that he’s lately been begging for cash to buy for himself.


Owen’s lawyers are not representing his fans in the California lawsuit. They are now represented by Marc Randazza.
Randazza told the Daily Dot that Patreon changed its terms of service after being notified by the 100 people that they intended to file a claim in arbitration, as required under its previous terms of service.
He characterizes the case as being about “access to justice” and the “erosion of class action rights.”
“What this case is really about is how every one of us is getting fucked daily by these companies that shove arbitration clauses into their mandatory contracts.


“That’s why I’m thrilled to be involved. … Otherwise how in the fuck are any of us supposed to stand up to billion-dollar companies?”

 

[Duke Nukem]

I thought this was about Sargon.

What's Sargon's name? Carl Otis Winslow?

I just know him as Sargon so I don't know his powerword.

 

[Knojkamarangasan_#4]

Owen Benjamin is fucking retarded and I would not have sex with his bears.

 

[Pomniman]

So this is the power of turpentine...

 

[Mrs Paul]

Well, let's see:
-Moon landing denier
-Believes that the trans rights movement is part of a eugenics conspiracy run by Bill Gates to lower the world population?!?! (I know how people here feel about transpeople, but c'mon. That's just flat out looney-toons.)
-He also seems to believe that HIV is a hoax.
-Is a creationist who doesn't believe that dinosaurs ever existed.
-It also looks like he falls in with the Holocaust denier crowd.

So I think someone's been drinking turpentine. (I just wish Steve Byrne would stop defending the guy, even if it's just kind of half-assed)

 

[The Last Stand]

Well, let's see:
-Moon landing denier
-Believes that the trans rights movement is part of a eugenics conspiracy run by Bill Gates to lower the world population?!?! (I know how people here feel about transpeople, but c'mon. That's just flat out looney-toons.)
-He also seems to believe that HIV is a hoax.
-Is a creationist who doesn't believe that dinosaurs ever existed.
-It also looks like he falls in with the Holocaust denier crowd.

So I think someone's been drinking turpentine. (I just wish Steve Byrne would stop defending the guy, even if it's just kind of half-assed)

I haven't heard of this guy until now. And he sounds like a piece of work to say the very least.

"Comedian." Sure, and I'm a political insider.

 

[Big Brown Schlub]

Well, let's see:
-Moon landing denier
-Believes that the trans rights movement is part of a eugenics conspiracy run by Bill Gates to lower the world population?!?! (I know how people here feel about transpeople, but c'mon. That's just flat out looney-toons.)
-He also seems to believe that HIV is a hoax.
-Is a creationist who doesn't believe that dinosaurs ever existed.
-It also looks like he falls in with the Holocaust denier crowd.

So I think someone's been drinking turpentine. (I just wish Steve Byrne would stop defending the guy, even if it's just kind of half-assed)

He also thinks nukes aren't real. Also to add to the moon landing thing - he thinks it isn't real because the moon isn't real.

EDIT: Oh yeah, forgot the best thing. He also hates Jordan Peterson because, I shit you not, he thinks Jordan Peterson is a wizard. "Wizard" is basically his word for people who hold too much power and are evil and whatever. He thinks that Peterson got addicted to benzos or whatever the fuck Peterson was addicted to (don't really follow him much) and that his daughter became a whore because becoming a wizard taints your soul as well as the souls of your descendants. Also about one week after he called Jordan Peterson's daughter a whore he made a video talking about how he thinks she wants to have sex with him.

 

[Jeff Gazetti]

I found out which bar his fans hang out at. Does this count as a dox?

 

[OnMoTi]

An update to its terms of service that went into effect on Jan. 1 both prohibits users from filing claims based on the platform kicking off someone else and requires any who do so to pay the company’s attorney’s fees and costs, court documents state.

You can write whatever bullshit you want into the TOS. Doesn't mean anything. You can't ban people from suing you.

 

[Imperial Citizen]

I've been using this channel to listen to the full insanity of "Big Bear"

ComfyBear

www.youtube.com

But if you want to listen to some highlights, Milker Nation and Digital Jonestown are the best.

Milker Nation

www.youtube.com

Digital Jonestown

www.youtube.com

 

[WarJams]

There was a hearing today.

Mike Tttttthhhhhhhhhhhhernovich was there live-twatting.

I don't think this "backfired" as much as smug bloggers would like to think it did, and considering she was memed into taking a break from twitter before this hearing even happened I don't think she's going to be a happy camper when she gets back.

It's made to sound like the judge did his homework on this issue, and a prepared judge is a formidable opponent. Patreon's lawyers were so panicked they started making arguments and citations to cases that weren't even in their briefs to desperately stave off getting butt-fucked from the bench. The preliminary injunction was not granted. Marc Randazza has ten days to respond to these new legal argument smokescreens.

Not a good day for Patreon.

 

[sperginity]

I wrote a thread about this guy and it went to the spergatory before some other asshole made a thread about him that got moved to internet famous. he is insane. He literally ingests turpentine as a health remedy and his retard fans listened to his legal advice.

 

[pwnest injun]

There was a hearing today.

Mike Tttttthhhhhhhhhhhhernovich was there live-twatting.

I don't think this "backfired" as much as smug bloggers would like to think it did, and considering she was memed into taking a break from twitter before this hearing even happened I don't think she's going to be a happy camper when she gets back.

It's made to sound like the judge did his homework on this issue, and a prepared judge is a formidable opponent. Patreon's lawyers were so panicked they started making arguments and citations to cases that weren't even in their briefs to desperately stave off getting butt-fucked from the bench. The preliminary injunction was not granted. Marc Randazza has ten days to respond to these new legal argument smokescreens.

Not a good day for Patreon.

What it sounds like is that Patreon will have to front $10k for the claimant's legal fees. Each claimant. So if 300 people brought suit, Patreon is on the hook for $3m in legal fees, not even including their own.

To put it another way, Pateron will have to finance arbitration lawsuits against themselves.

 

[TFT-A9]

I'm really torn over who I want to see get fucked in the ass more here.

 

[F/lying Frankenstein]

I'm really torn over who I want to see get fucked in the ass more here.

Why not both?

 

[Cast Iron Pan]

There was a hearing today.

Mike Tttttthhhhhhhhhhhhernovich was there live-twatting.

I don't think this "backfired" as much as smug bloggers would like to think it did, and considering she was memed into taking a break from twitter before this hearing even happened I don't think she's going to be a happy camper when she gets back.

It's made to sound like the judge did his homework on this issue, and a prepared judge is a formidable opponent. Patreon's lawyers were so panicked they started making arguments and citations to cases that weren't even in their briefs to desperately stave off getting butt-fucked from the bench. The preliminary injunction was not granted. Marc Randazza has ten days to respond to these new legal argument smokescreens.

Not a good day for Patreon.

Patreon Faces New Legal Peril Under California Law

Patreon has lost several high profile creators including Sam Harris, Dave Rubin, and Jordan Peterson due to Patreon's decision to begin censoring creators for ideological reasons. https://youtu.be/IrmtlP9-b0Y The belief is that Patreon can ban anyone

www.cernovich.com

Patreon Faces New Legal Peril Under California Law

Patreon has lost several high profile creators including Sam Harris, Dave Rubin, and Jordan Peterson due to Patreon’s decision to begin censoring creators for ideological reasons.

The belief is that Patreon can ban anyone they want to. Is this true under California law?

“Private companies can do whatever they want,” is an old canard repeated by people who aren’t lawyers or aren’t very good lawyers. But a new legal remedy is available under California’s arbitration law, especially with the adoption of SB-707.

There’s an economic relationship between Creators and their Backers.

Patreon, by banning a Creator, disrupts the economic relationship between Creator and Backer. In legal terms this is called tortious interference with a business relationship.

Backers can demand to have the disruption of this relationship sent to arbitration.

Patreon, under California law, must pay the arbitration fees in advance. These fees can be upward of $10,000 per case.

If 500 backers demanded arbitration, Patreon would need to put up five million dollars in advance in filing fees alone. Legal fees will ramp those fees up by a factor of ten.

And judges are enforcing the law strictly:

DoorDash Ordered to Pay $9.5M to Arbitrate 5,000 Labor Disputes:
SAN FRANCISCO (CN) – Rejecting claims that the legal process it forced on workers is unfair, a federal judge Monday ordered food-delivery service DoorDash to pay $9.5 million in arbitration fees for 5,010 delivery drivers’ labor demands against the company.
“You’re going to pay that money,” U.S. District Judge William Alsup said in court. “You don’t want to pay millions of dollars, but that’s what you bargained to do and you’re going to do it.”

Patreon has tried writing itself out of this legal requirement with amended Terms of Service, which took effect on January 3, 2020:

You may not bring a claim against us for suspending or terminating another person’s account, and you agree you will not bring such a claim. If you try to bring such a claim, you are responsible for the damages caused, including attorneys fees and costs.

This provision is unlawful and unenforceable, because Patreon demands all users abide by JAMS Streamlined Arbitration Rules and Procedures:

If a dispute does arise out of these terms or related to your use of Patreon, and it cannot be resolved after you talk with us, then it must be resolved by arbitration. This arbitration must be administered by JAMS under the JAMS Streamlined Arbitration Rules and Procedures, except as expressly provided below. Judgment on the arbitration entered in any court with jurisdiction. Arbitrations may only take place on an individual basis. No class arbitrations or other other grouping of parties is allowed. By agreeing to these terms you are waiving your right to trial by jury or to participate in a class action or representative proceeding; we are also waiving these rights.

Under California law, a consumer cannot be forced to pay costs and fees under a mandatory arbitration clause. California law is clear:

For matters involving consumers, the consumer is only required to pay $250. See JAMS Policy on Consumer Arbitrations Pursuant to Pre-Dispute Clauses. For matters based on a clause or agreement that is required as a condition of employment, the employee is only required to pay $400. See JAMS Policy on Employment Arbitrations, Minimum Standards of Fairness.

In other words, if Patreon bans a Creator, and the Backers want to file arbitration claims, Patreon will have to be millions of dollars of fees.

As one law firm specialization in arbitration law notes:

SB 707 applies to employment or consumer arbitration agreements and requires that the drafting party pay any fees and costs that might be due before the arbitration can proceed within 30 days after the due date. The failure by the drafting party to pay will mean that the drafting party is in material breach of the arbitration agreement, is in default of the arbitration and will waive its right to compel arbitration

There is no exception to this law, and Patreon cannot draft its way out of California law with a Terms of Service update. Again, California law provides:

With respect to the cost of the arbitration, when a consumer initiates arbitration against the company, the only fee required to be paid by the consumer is $250, which is approximately equivalent to current Court filing fees. All other costs must be borne by the company, including any remaining JAMS Case Management Fee and all professional fees for the arbitrator’s services. When the company is the claiming party initiating an arbitration against the consumer, the company will be required to pay all costs associated with the arbitration.

Patreon may win on the grounds that its Terms of Service as of January 2020 apply to all creators banned in 2020 or beyond. It’s unlikely they will, because courts look unfavorably on parties who demand arbitration while seeking to opt-out of rules they don’t like.

My best guess is that if a Creator or Backer sued Patreon to have the fee-shifting provision struck from the Terms of Service, then that party would prevail.

Any Patreon creator banned before 2020 will have favorable procedural rules, and Backers bringing claims will not be required to pay more than $250.

The same rules would also apply to PayPal and other companies with mandatory arbitration provisions.

 

[mindlessobserver]

It hasn't backfired. Holy shit these retards went Allah Ackbar and the explosion actually scored a direct hit. The arbitration judge has refused to dismiss all thr actions and under california law Patreon must pay for all the arbitration hearings. Something they would not have to do if they had allowed in their contract to use the courts. hoisted by their own underwear, straight up the flag pole.

 

[Orange Rhymer]

It hasn't backfired. Holy shit these retards went Allah Ackbar and the explosion actually scored a direct hit. The arbitration judge has refused to dismiss all thr actions and under california law Patreon must pay for all the arbitration hearings. Something they would not have to do if they had allowed in their contract to use the courts. hoisted by their own underwear, straight up the flag pole.

Apparently God favors children, fools, drunks, and fools drunk on kerosene.

I saw a recap. Not only did that retard score a direct hit - but he scored a direct hit against any technocrat based in Silicon Valley. If 2000 people sue Apple for banning someone off of iTunes, Apple has to pay their legal fees for arbitration. Additionally Apple has to hold in escrow the portion of the suit for arbitration. Apple and Google can easily afford it. Patreon, Paypal, and Twitter can't.

I have no doubt this law will be annulled or removed ASAP. It's a major kink in the armor of the technocracy. Death by a thousand fans.
Use it while you can.

 

[KingCoelacanth]

California use to be actually pretty liberal and they had a lot of anti-corporate, pro-consumer, pro-worker laws put into action. Silicon Valley being in California opens them up to a lot of possible lawsuits like this.

 

[Malus Darkblade]

Usually the jew cries out as he strikes you, but sometimes, the jew cries out because he accidentally struck himself.

 

[Niggernerd]

You're acting like a bunch of white niggers