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Among the tracks David Gruebel's family is accused of sharing is Avril Lavigne's 'Sk8er Boi' and it is Lavigne's label, Nettwerk Music Group, that has leapt to his defence.

'Suing music fans is not the solution, it's the problem,' said Terry McBride, Nettwerk's CEO. 'Litigation is not "artist development". Litigation is a deterrent to creativity and passion and it is hurting the business I love. The current actions of the RIAA are not in my artists' best interests.'

McBride became aware of the Gruebel's fate when David's daughter, 15-year-old Elisa wrote to another act on the label, MC Lars, about the words to his track

'My family is one of the many seemingly randomly chosen [sic] families to be sued by the RIAA,' she wrote. 'No fun. You can't fight them. trying could possibly cost us millions.'

The Gruebels can now hire the services of a lawyer who has experience of defending alleged file sharers, Chicago-based Charles Lee Mudd.

'Since 2003 the RIAA has continually misused the court and legal system, engaging in misguided litigation tactics for the purpose of extorting settlement amounts from everyday people - parents, students, doctors, and general consumers of music, Mudd told canada.com.

The Gruebels are accused of sharing nine specific song files for which the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) is claiming $9,000 in damages for what it insists is 'theft'.

'Theft undermines the ability of the music companies to invest in the new bands of tomorrow and deprives labels, songwriters and musicians of their hard-earned royalties,' said RIAA spokesman Jonathan Lamy.