Possibly the Biggest Legal Win of the Month

Well, the month ain't over yet, but....

The Brady Bunch sponsored a lawsuit against the businesses that sold stuff to the Aurora theater shooter. The lawsuit was aimed at generating publicity, and was prohibited under the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act.

The judge was highly displeased.

He has just awarded the defendants $200,000 in legal fees, out of the pockets of the plaintiffs the Brady Bunch recruited.

The judge was unsympathetic to the plea that the Brady Bunch ought to pay instead of the plaintiffs. Basically, he said that if the Brady Bunch can afford to sponsor the litigation, they can choose to reimburse the people they recruited.

This qualifies as a bench slap:

Quote

It is apparent that this case was filed to pursue the political purposes of the Brady Center and, given the failure to present any cognizable legal claim, bringing these defendants into the Colorado court where the prosecution of James Holmes was proceeding appears to be more of an opportunity to propagandize the public and stigmatize the defendants than to obtain a court order which counsel should have known would be outside the authority of this court.

I think the next plaintiffs that the Brady Bunch recruits are going to be a lot harder to convince that they should put their names and faces on a frivolous suit.

More info:
Of Arms and the Law

judge's order

I love it!

HOLY SCHIT!

That constitutes HUGE, alright!

Wow, that is something else.

That ain't a bench slap, dats a bich slap!

Now if some judge would bitch slap the tree hugging wolf lovers that way I could celebrate.

Quote

It is apparent that this case was filed to pursue the political purposes of the Brady Center and, given the failure to present any cognizable legal claim, bringing these defendants into the Colorado court where the prosecution of James Holmes was proceeding appears to be more of an opportunity to propagandize the public and stigmatize the defendants than to obtain a court order which counsel should have known would be outside the authority of this court.

I'll bet that judge is sick of obama also.

Originally Posted by watch4bear

Quote

It is apparent that this case was filed to pursue the political purposes of the Brady Center and, given the failure to present any cognizable legal claim, bringing these defendants into the Colorado court where the prosecution of James Holmes was proceeding appears to be more of an opportunity to propagandize the public and stigmatize the defendants than to obtain a court order which counsel should have known would be outside the authority of this court.

I'll bet that judge is sick of obama also.

A judge who followed the Law.

Don't worry, he will be over ruled by Roberts.

Originally Posted by 12344mag

That ain't a bench slap, dats a bich slap!

Beat me to it. I hope it was a hard enough slap that Obama's momma felt it!

That is the way it should always be.

If you sew and loose you pay.

It would sure cut down on frivolous lawsuits.

The Judge actually did something right and fined the right people and went with the gun people WOW who woulda thought.

Originally Posted by denton

Well

This qualifies as a bench slap:

Quote of the day, week, month, year, right there.
Thank you, Sir.
I sure love your posts.

Quote

I think the next plaintiffs that the Brady Bunch recruits are going to be a lot harder to convince that they should put their names and faces on a frivolous suit.

I think you're on to something there.

Thanks, Denton for putting this up, my evening just got a little brighter here.

GTC

If more judges would do this it would sure cut down on frivolous lawsuits, not just in firearms related lawsuits but in all of the ambulance chasing that goes on. 95% of them get thrown out at first glance but the damage is already done because the defendant had to hire a lawyer and invest lots of time to rebut the lawsuit. If the plaintiff filing the lawsuit had to pay the defendant's legal fees if they lost then it would go a long ways toward controlling insurance and medical costs.

This just gets better and better. Lucky Gunner has announced that it will donate its share of the award to the 2A organization that its customers choose. You can vote here.

Originally Posted by denton

Well, the month ain't over yet, but....

The Brady Bunch sponsored a lawsuit against the businesses that sold stuff to the Aurora theater shooter. The lawsuit was aimed at generating publicity, and was prohibited under the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act.

The judge was highly displeased.

He has just awarded the defendants $200,000 in legal fees, out of the pockets of the plaintiffs the Brady Bunch recruited.

The judge was unsympathetic to the plea that the Brady Bunch ought to pay instead of the plaintiffs. Basically, he said that if the Brady Bunch can afford to sponsor the litigation, they can choose to reimburse the people they recruited.

This qualifies as a bench slap:

Quote

It is apparent that this case was filed to pursue the political purposes of the Brady Center and, given the failure to present any cognizable legal claim, bringing these defendants into the Colorado court where the prosecution of James Holmes was proceeding appears to be more of an opportunity to propagandize the public and stigmatize the defendants than to obtain a court order which counsel should have known would be outside the authority of this court.

I think the next plaintiffs that the Brady Bunch recruits are going to be a lot harder to convince that they should put their names and faces on a frivolous suit.

More info:
Of Arms and the Law

judge's order

I'm betting the judge has a Ducks Unlimited sticker on his back window.

Nice morning newsflash!

One of the major failings of our tort system is that such judgments are not automatic. It's up to the discretion of the judge, and I believe the jursidiction's rules, which in my view is inadequate deterrence to frivolous lawsuits.

In the British (and Canadian) legal system, ANY defendant in ANY lawsuit can at the time of judgment petition the court for the plaintiff to pay costs, and it is routinely petitioned and routinely ordered. By costs, that means not just the legal costs of the defendant, but all court costs as well.

At present, American ambulance-chasers are able to bottom-feed without any real penalty for their borderline unethical actions. They have the prospect of a windfall share of any award, and no penalty if the suit fails. This changes in a big damn hurry when the plaintiff faces the prospect of being bankrupted for bringing the lawsuit to begin with.