The 1st Circuit has reinstated a $675,000 damages award against grad student Joel Tenenbaum for illegal music downloading, but remanded the case for review of whether the verdict was excessive.

When a jury socked Joel Tenenbaum with a $675,000 verdict in 2009 for illegally downloading 30 songs, a federal judge reduced the award to $67,500 on due process grounds.

Judge Nancy Gertner of the District of Massachusetts has cut the damages verdict against copyright infringer Joel Tenenbaum for illegally downloading and distributing songs by 90 percent, to $67,500. The judge slashed the jury’s award from $22,500 for each of 30 songs Tenenbaum was found to have willfully infringed, to $2,250 per song

At a District of Massachusetts hearing about whether music downloader Joel Tenenbaum should have a new copyright infringement trial or whether the court should reduce the $675,000 jury verdict, lawyers debated Congress’ intent in setting infringement damages. The case is headed for a third trial following Chief Judge Michael Davis’ order last month to cut the verdict to $54,000.

A jury in a high-profile federal copyright infringement trial on Friday ordered a Boston University graduate student to pay $675,000 to several record companies for illegally downloading and distributing 30 of their songs. Joel Tenenbaum appeared stoic as the jury announced that each of the 30 counts of willful infringement would cost him $22,500. Though steep, the tab is far less than the $4.5 million that the companies could have received had the jury imposed the maximum per-song damages allowed under law.