BOSTON -- Opening statements were delivered Tuesday in a civil lawsuit against a Boston University student.

The recording industry accuses Boston University grad student Joel Tenenbaum of illegally downloading and distributing thousands of songs.

Tenenbaum is the second person in the country to go to trial on charges of illegally downloading and distributing music on the Kazaa file sharing Web site.

"The largest four recording companies are going after me, clogging up the court system," Tenenbaum said.

Harvard law professor Charles Nesson took on the case pro bono.

"He's a completely non-commercial person not doing it for the money. He was a kid who was sharing music with his friends," Nesson said.

Opening statements began Tuesday morning at the federal courthouse in Boston. The record industry accused the Providence native of downloading more than 800 songs, though the case focuses on 30.

"If you look at the law yhat was passed by Congress and say $150,000 per song, if willful, that multiples out to $4.5 million, which is crazy," Nesson said.

Tenenbaum suspects the jury will rule against him, but he's hopeful the damages won't be as high as the first music downloading case to go to trial. A federal jury ruled a Minnesota woman must pay nearly $2 million.

The judge set a Friday end date for the trial. If the federal jury rules in favor of the recording industry, there could be a hearing on whether the damages are considered grossly excessive.