MacGyverMagic/Mgm wrote:
On 4/24/07, Ray Saintonge wrote:
Phil Sandifer wrote:
On Apr 24, 2007, at 4:25 AM, MacGyverMagic/Mgm wrote:
P.S. Did that Barbara Bauer lawsuit ever actually get to court or was that another empty threat?
I'm not sure.
The case was only filed a couple of weeks ago. Valid or not you can't expect it to get to court so quickly.
The legal system is, if I understand correctly, even more sluggish than the publishing industry. Let me say that differently: has there been a decision if this is actually going to court? If it takes so long before it can be scheduled, at least they could make a quick decision so a case can be scheduled, otherwise you're just waiting longer.
I don't know what the court rules are like in New Jersey, but in most jurisdictions (unless their is a clear urgency to prevent damages) _at least_ 30 days is allowed for filing defences to a court action. WMF and perhaps other defendants are not in NJ so they all need sufficient time to consult with their advisors, and write up their defences. Doing nothing is not a good option because that can lead to a default judgement. Nothing can or should happen until the defences have been filed.
Once defences have been filed, here may need to be time for disclosure of documents or examinations for discovery. After that there is a need to find an available court date; this depends on how busy the courts in the jurisdiction are with other case. Once that is decided it is also possible that the lawyers for any one of the parties to seek an adjournment for any of a number of important reasons, such as his client needing toenail sugery on that date. All that being said, waiting two years for this to get to court is not out of the question.
Most likely New Jersey's court rules are available on line; you may want to look them up for more precise answers.
Ec