The entire purpose of a copyright troll is to force a settlement. The last thing they want is a lawsuit to actually go to trial as the cost then exceeds the potential. In my view, the odds are very low that this would ever actually get to a trial. It is the threat of such that forces the settlement, as if she is crazy enough to file a lawsuit, your friend would then have to respond, likely by hiring a lawyer in Atlanta (cause lets face it, she'll stay in the jurisdiction she knows) and those costs will add up.
First piece of advice: tell him not to even respond to her. Not even to say he's taken the poem down.
Second piece: talk to a lawyer to figure out what to do next.
Third piece: Your friend is an idiot if he simply tries to pay her off. Willingly choosing to get scammed just to make something go away is flat out dumb.
Fourth piece: Seriously, talk to a bloody lawyer, not us idiots on CP.
