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Bar Complaint Evidence · February 2026
A documented timeline of professional misconduct by attorney Randall Scott Newman (NY #4078283, CA #190547), who operates as "The DMCA Lawyer." Newman is pushing a legal theory that would make it a federal crime to use yt-dlp, OBS, a screen recorder, or any tool to capture a public YouTube video for commentary. Every clip channel, react creator, video essayist, and journalist who embeds footage would be at risk.
While pushing this theory, Newman has told people to kill themselves, harassed disabled people on his business accounts, published home addresses, mocked religious faith for months, sued lawyers for filing counter-notices, and admitted to soliciting clients in ways he knows violate the rules. All of it documented below with screenshots, emails, and timestamps.
Newman is licensed in both New York and California. You can file in both jurisdictions. Every complaint becomes part of the attorney's disciplinary record regardless of outcome.
Attorney Grievance Committee
First Judicial Department
180 Maiden Lane, 17th Floor
New York, NY 10038
State Bar of California
Office of Chief Trial Counsel, Intake Unit
845 S. Figueroa Street
Los Angeles, CA 90017-2515
Phone: 213-765-1000
Newman is an attorney licensed in New York and California. He runs a YouTube channel called "The DMCA Lawyer" where he advertises his legal services and discusses active cases. His listed office is "99 Wall Street, Suite 3727" in New York; that address is a virtual mailbox. He signed a sworn federal court declaration from Bangkok, Thailand.
He represents Christopher Cordova (Denver Metro Audits) in Cordova v. Huneault, Case No. 5:25-cv-04685-VKD in the Northern District of California. The lawsuit includes a Section 1201 circumvention claim against someone for downloading publicly available YouTube videos and using clips in commentary.
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Newman filed at least eight federal lawsuits in roughly four months, mostly against YouTube commentary channels. He filed in Northern District of California despite clients and defendants being in Colorado, Florida, Canada, and Pakistan. When Judge Orrick asked why he had jurisdiction, Newman admitted he was unaware of case law supporting it. In one case, he stated the suit was filed to give the defendant 'incentive to settle quickly and remove the video' and that he 'was not concerned about monetization status' because he couldn't get infringement damages anyway. YouTube itself reviewed and restored multiple videos as fair use.
On December 1, 2025, Newman told a Discord user to kill himself, confirmed it when challenged, acknowledged in a private message that it could get him disbarred, and then repeated the conduct weeks later. Encouraging suicide is a felony under both New York Penal Law Section 120.30 and California Penal Code Section 401(a).
On September 19, 2025, Newman emailed Peter Coventry, an acquaintance of the defendant, to extract case-related information. He knew the defendant had retained attorney Steven Vondran. His own email says 'I predicted he would retain Vondran bro.' He then asked Coventry to secretly ask the defendant whether he had deleted certain videos. Rule 4.2 is one of the most strictly enforced rules in attorney discipline because it protects the attorney-client relationship.
Newman used YouTube's @ tagging to send direct notifications to specific people telling them to 'Email me.' In comment sections, he told people to contact him if they wanted to 'get in on the action.' On a livestream, he admitted on camera that he knew direct solicitation was against the rules but was using YouTube tagging as a workaround.
Newman used his business accounts to make AI-generated images mocking the defendant's appearance and his wife's appearance. He published the defendant's full home address on YouTube without redaction. He accused the defendant of 'stealing money' through a GoFundMe, when the defendant had actually spent $40,000 in legal fees and only raised $27,000. The case is on contingency for the plaintiff; the defense pays out of pocket. Newman is mocking the financial pain his own lawsuit causes.
Newman created AI images mocking wheelchair users, tagged them directly on his business YouTube channel, and called them "broke losers" and "lame gimps." On a livestream he said: "turns out you're some fuckin loser... Can't even afford a new wheelchair." He ridiculed a man who was paralyzed after being shot by police. All of this was on accounts he uses to advertise his law practice.
After discovering that YouTuber Patrick D'Arcy had posted a video about a personal spiritual experience, Newman launched a sustained campaign. He made AI images mocking D'Arcy's faith. He compared D'Arcy's experience to hallucinogenic mushrooms. He used AI to clone D'Arcy's voice for a mocking video. When viewers criticized him, he said he was not sorry and told people to 'Cry Harder.' This went on for months.
Newman lists "99 Wall Street, Suite 3727" as his office on bar registrations, court filings, and his website. That address is a virtual mailbox from PhysicalAddress.com starting at $19.98/month. The building has 25 floors; "Suite 3727" implies a 37th floor that does not exist. In a sworn declaration filed in Cordova v. Huneault, Newman signed under penalty of perjury: "Executed on this 2nd day of September, 2025, in Bangkok, Thailand."
Newman conducted regular YouTube livestreams discussing pending cases in detail, including legal strategy, evidence, and characterizations of Judge DeMarchi's off-the-record statements from a status hearing. Off-the-record judicial statements are confidential. He announced that YouTube had disclosed identity information in response to subpoenas before this appeared on the public docket. His YouTube channel URL appears in his federal court filing signature block.
Newman filed three federal lawsuits against two attorneys for the act of filing DMCA counter-notices on behalf of their clients. A counter-notice is the statutory mechanism Congress created under 17 U.S.C. Section 512(g) for someone who believes their content was wrongly taken down. It is a core legal function. Attorney Robert Reed's law practice has reportedly closed, and his counter-notice service now returns a 404 error.
Newman and his client Cordova livestream on YouTube discussing Cordova v. Huneault in detail, including over 2,000 video takedowns, subpoena filings, and litigation strategy.
Newman files Executive Lens LLC v. Rapkin in the Northern District of California, suing a lawyer for the act of filing a DMCA counter-notice on behalf of a client.
Newman files at least eight federal copyright lawsuits in the Northern District of California on behalf of YouTube creators, despite clients and defendants being located in Colorado, Florida, Canada, and Pakistan. When Judge Orrick asks why the Northern District has jurisdiction, Newman admits he is 'unaware of case law establishing the jurisdiction.'
Newman files Liberty Troll LLC v. Reed in the Northern District of California. Reed is sued for filing a DMCA counter-notice; the statutory mechanism Congress created for people who believe their content was wrongly removed.
After a status hearing, Newman and Cordova livestream publicly characterizing Judge DeMarchi's off-the-record statements, claiming she "attempted to dissuade Vondran from filing a motion to dismiss." Off-the-record judicial statements are confidential.
Ten days later, Newman files Executive Lens LLC v. Reed, a second federal lawsuit against the same attorney for the same type of conduct. Reed's law practice has since reportedly closed. His counter-notice service, counterdmca.com, now returns a 404.
Newman publishes the defendant's full residential address on his YouTube channel and personal website without redaction. He titles the video 'Frauditor Troll Unmasked' and brags about identifying the defendant. He then creates an image depicting the defendant hiding in a cardboard box.
Newman files a declaration under penalty of perjury in Cordova v. Huneault. The execution line reads: "Executed on this 2nd day of September, 2025, in Bangkok, Thailand." His bar registration and court filings list "99 Wall Street, Suite 3727, New York" as his office. That building has 25 floors. Suite 3727 implies a 37th floor that does not exist. The address is a virtual mailbox from PhysicalAddress.com.
Newman emails Peter Coventry, an acquaintance of the defendant, asking him to relay questions about the pending case. Newman's own email proves he knew the defendant had retained attorney Steven Vondran: 'I predicted he would retain Vondran bro. Fuk.'
Later the same day, Newman emails Coventry: "Can you ask him what he means when he said the 1,700 videos are gone forever? Did he retain the videos and data?" He is trying to extract litigation-relevant information from a represented party through a go-between.
Newman uses YouTube's @ mention feature on his 'The DMCA Lawyer' channel to send direct notifications to specific individuals with whom he has no prior relationship, directing them to email him. He tags multiple accounts in a single post, each followed by '(Email Me).'
In YouTube comment sections, Newman asks specific individuals to contact him so they could 'get in on the action.' This is a direct offer of legal services to non-clients in a public forum.
On a livestream on Denver Metro Audits' channel, Newman says: "I've been trying to get a hold of him for weeks... I've sent him a couple of messages." He acknowledges he cannot directly email potential clients and describes using YouTube tagging as a workaround. A third party on the stream then tells viewers: if anyone knows how to reach Johnny Somali, email Randall.
After the defendant mentioned on a livestream that his hair was thinning, Newman created and published an image depicting him as bald on his business YouTube channel.
After the defendant described his wife as beautiful during a livestream, Newman created and published an AI-generated image mocking her physical appearance. He later removed this from his channel.
After the defendant launched a GoFundMe to cover legal fees, Newman published an image depicting him as a homeless beggar. The case is on contingency for the plaintiff; the defense pays out of pocket. Newman is mocking the financial strain his own lawsuit causes.
On a livestream, the plaintiff's representative states the defendant was "stealing money" from viewers. Newman does not correct the claim. Separately, Newman writes that the defendant is "ripping off the subs until they realize it's a scam."
Newman creates and publishes AI-generated images depicting two wheelchair users in a degrading manner, tagging them directly on his YouTube channel.
On a livestream, Newman says: "turns out you're some fuckin loser... well you make it seem like you're some big fuckin stud and turns out you're a fuckin loser... Can't even afford a new wheelchair."
Newman creates an AI-generated image depicting a disabled man on a bus alongside a caricature of his wife, after learning she was overweight.
Newman describes two wheelchair-bound individuals as "broke losers" and "lame gimps" in YouTube comments under his business account. Other commenters express disbelief.
Newman tells a Discord user "Go Kill yourself," followed by "Everyone will be happier." Discord moderators delete the message for violating terms of service. The deleted message is visible in a quote reply that reads "Original message was deleted."
When confronted by other users, Newman writes: "Violation of what? This is fight zone. I didn't threaten him, I offered him a suggestion to end his miserable existence. Unfortunately, I doubt he will take my advice."
In a private Discord conversation, Newman asks another user: "Do you have a screen shot of me telling Lobber to kill himself?" When told someone does, he responds: "I may get disbarred...lol"
After discovering that YouTuber Patrick D'Arcy posted a video about a personal spiritual experience involving Jesus, Newman publishes multiple AI-generated images mocking D'Arcy's faith on his business YouTube channel.
Newman publishes a YouTube Short comparing D'Arcy's spiritual experience to the use of hallucinogenic mushrooms.
Newman uses AI to clone D'Arcy's voice and creates a video using that cloned voice to mock D'Arcy's Christian faith.
When viewers criticize the religious harassment campaign, Newman responds by saying he is not sorry and tells people to 'Cry Harder.'
Despite acknowledging the risk of disbarment, Newman tells the same person: 'There is still time if you know what I mean.' He then posts a meme of a woman pretending to hang herself, removing any ambiguity.
Newman is trying to set a legal precedent where using yt-dlp, OBS, or any screen recording tool to capture a public YouTube video for commentary is a federal crime under DMCA Section 1201. If this theory holds up, every react channel, video essayist, and journalist who embeds clips is at risk.
The attorney pushing this theory tells people to kill themselves, mocks wheelchair users as "lame gimps," publishes home addresses, and sues lawyers for filing the counter-notices Congress created for them to file. He does all of it from business accounts he uses to advertise his law practice.
If you hold other people to the standard of the law, you should be held to the rules that govern your own profession.
Newman is licensed in both New York and California. You can file in both jurisdictions. Every complaint becomes part of the attorney's disciplinary record regardless of outcome.
Attorney Grievance Committee
First Judicial Department
180 Maiden Lane, 17th Floor
New York, NY 10038
State Bar of California
Office of Chief Trial Counsel, Intake Unit
845 S. Figueroa Street
Los Angeles, CA 90017-2515
Phone: 213-765-1000