Major Labels Fire Back Against Verizon’s Push to Pause Copyright Suit: ‘This Case Is Already One Year Old and Has Not Left the Gate’

Earlier this month, Verizon moved to pause its major-label copyright showdown pending the Supreme Court’s Cox ruling. Now, the majors have formally opposed the request.

Technically, that opposition isn’t new. In asking the court to temporarily halt the case – centering, like several others, on the defendant’s purported failure to address internet customers’ infringement – Verizon noted that “the Labels oppose a stay.”

Now, the majors themselves have elaborated on the stance in a letter to the court. “Verizon’s stay request is its latest effort to shield its misconduct from scrutiny, which persists even during this litigation,” their legal team wrote.

“Even if the Supreme Court adopts the Cox petitioner’s far-fetched interpretation of the law, that would neither dispose of Plaintiffs’ case against Verizon nor meaningfully alter the discovery needed,” the plaintiffs proceeded.

From there, the majors claimed that Verizon had “tried to stall this case” – which “is already one year old and has not left the gate” – from the outset.

Additionally, the filing parties built on their belief that regardless of how the Supreme Court rules, Verizon will ultimately be compelled to face the present action and related discovery.

“Even if the Supreme Court adopts Cox’s view that an internet provider cannot be liable as a contributory infringer without conscious and culpable participation in the infringement, discovery will still be needed on Verizon’s repeat infringer policy and DMCA program” as well as a whole lot else pertaining to vicarious liability, the majors relayed in more words.

“Briefing in Cox will proceed through the fall,” the majors summed up, “with a ruling by June 2026. Discovery, once started, is unlikely to conclude before then. The Court should let discovery proceed now so that the parties can develop the facts.”

Far from throwing in the stay-request towel, Verizon counsel went ahead and submitted a follow-up to the plaintiffs’ letter – pointing out that the majors had recently agreed to stay their Altice case pending the Supreme Court ruling.

(Unlike with the comparatively new Verizon action, that dispute would have headed to trial in September, it’s worth noting.)

“The same Labels that oppose Verizon’s request for a stay pending the Supreme Court’s Cox decision recently jointly sought of stay [sic?] of their similar lawsuit against another ISP, which the Court granted,” Verizon attorneys penned.

“The different procedural postures of the cases do not justify the Labels’ conflicting positions — the same considerations of judicial economy and litigation costs apply here,” they continued.

At the time of this writing, the presiding judge had yet to decide on the stay question. Meanwhile, as highlighted above, the Supreme Court is expected to hand down the all-important Cox ruling by the end of June 2026.