Not So Sweet In Court

Sweet guitarist Andy Scott’s legal bid to sue an eBay customer for selling a used CD from his band is likely to end up costing him close to $80,000.

That’s where the UK’s Classic Rock magazine is pitching the damage, after his five-year legal battle with Dietmar Huber came unstuck in the Austrian High Court.

After first accusing Huber of having a bootleg copy of Sweet’s album The Legend Lives On, Scott then tried to sue Huber for selling the used CD.

When Huber refused to take down the item from eBay, Scott filed an injunction to stop the disc from being sold.

He demanded $45,000 in compensation, claiming he owned the copyright on the name and that Huber did not have the right to sell the disc.

The Austrian court ruled in favour of Huber, declaring it to be a private sale.

It said that no crime was committed. Huber, who’s from western Austria, said he was “flabbergasted” when he received a letter from a German lawyer accusing him of breaching Sweet’s and Andy Scott’s copyright, along with a bill for about $2,500.

Scott now faces the bill for the court hearing, along with Huber’s legal expenses, which Classic Rock estimated to be $78,000. The CD eventually sold on eBay for one euro (about $1.25).

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