Coalition Asks Justices to Take Piracy Case

A disparate group of state attorneys general, labor unions, retailers, professional sports leagues and others urged the U.S. Supreme Court to hear a claim brought by the recording and film industries against two Internet file-sharing firms.

In several legal briefs filed with the court, the petitioners stressed that the justices should finally resolve conflicting lower court rulings on file sharing, said Steven Marks, general counsel for the Recording Industry Assn. of America.

The filings are designed to support a petition made last month by a coalition of major recording companies and Hollywood movie studios that asked the court to reverse lower court decisions clearing Grokster Ltd. and StreamCast Networks Inc. of liability for their customers’ online swapping of movies and music.