Well. I am now retiring.

Of course FiXato fixed it

With respect to any dramatic conversations in the past or in the future. We live now, what we do now is what matters. Disagreement is and should always be fine, it should be clear that while we disagree we try to do so respectfully and without assumptions (better to ask than to assume). Also it is important to try not to take comments personally, that is important when the person is sitting across the table but especially so if that person is not (and it is as such even harder to judge that person’s state of mind).

(I am not saying this is always easy)

And of course this is my take, feel free to add, agree or disagree.

In theory: YES!
In reality: nah, not really...
A general, not 100% correct to the letter of the law, explanation: The fact is that no matter what, unless a company had declared their software freeware (or something similar) they still own the copyright and the right of distribution. So other people are not allowed to distribute them.
These days, a lot of those companies don't exist anymore. Some IP got sold to other companies, etc... But, a few of these companies are still active and like for example Konami still releases games from these old franchises (Castlevania, Metal Gear) sometimes including MSX based emulations.
So, in general you don't have to worry about it too much. But, if you want to be on the safe side...

That is most certainly a solution. Although some people don't know how to apply .IPS patches (while it's guite simple indeed) or have trouble finding the ROM with the correct checksum.

Ah, well... who knows how they thinking. Remember the Nintendo lawsuit? After years they remembered to take care of their roms.

No, you can have a fine and costs to pay but you risk jail only if you don't pay.
In fact, it depends on the tenacity of the complainant. If he's willing to waste time and money on a trial, it can happen. I do not think someone to go far for Coleco ROMs, SG-1000 ROMs or even for most MSX ROMs.