Sua Sponte

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Bernina of Am., v. Imageline, Inc., No. 10 C 4917, Slip Op. (N.D. Ill. Jan. 18, 2011) (Shadur, Sen. J).
Judge Shadur sua sponte ordered defendant to correct its answer. Two paragraphs stated that defendant lacked information and belief sufficient to answer and, based upon that, denied the contentions. The Court explained that denying a contention for which one lacked information and belief was “oxymoronic.” The Court gave defendant time to file a paper removing the relevant denials.
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Continue Reading “Oxymoronic” to Deny Contentions for Which You Lack Knowledge

Trading Technologies Int’l, Inc. v. CQG, Inc., No. 10 C 718, Slip Op. (N.D. Ill. Jan. 24, 2011) (Shadur, Sen. J.).*
Judge Shadur sua sponte dismissed defendants’ (collectively “CQG”) noninfringement and invalidity counterclaims. The Court explained that “mirror image” noninfringement and invalidity patent counterclaims are “seemingly meaningless.” And the “amorphous nature” of CQG’s counterclaims resulted in them being especially unnecessary. The Court, therefore, dismissed the declaratory judgment counterclaims.
*Click here for much more on this and TT’s other cases in the Blog’s archives.
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Continue Reading Trading Technologies: “Mirror Image” Patent Counterclaims Struck Sua Sponte as “Meaningless”

Bernina of Am., Inc. v. Imageline, Inc., No. 10 C 4917, Slip Op. (N.D. Ill. Jan. 12, 2011) (Shadur, Sen. J.).
Judge Shadur sua sponte struck two paragraphs of plaintiff’s answer and affirmative defenses to defendants’ counterclaims. Both paragraphs denied allegations for which plaintiff lacked information and belief, which was both “oxymoronic” and in violation of Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(b)(5).
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Continue Reading Parties May Not Deny Statements for Which They Lack Information and Belief

JAB Distribs., LLC v. Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc., No. 10 C 5716, Slip Op. (N.D. Ill. Oct. 26, 2010) (Shadur, Sen. J.).
Judge Shadur sua sponte struck plaintiff JAB’s reply to defendant Martha Stewart Living’s counterclaims. The reply failed to comply with Local Rule 10.1, requiring that an answer repeat the contention before responding to it. Additionally, JAB was ordered not to deny statements for which it lacked information and belief; as denying something about which one lacks sufficient information is “oxymoronic.”
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Continue Reading Northern District Answers Must Repeat the Complaint’s Allegations

Bernina J. Am. v. Imageline, Inc., No. 10 C 4917, Slip Op. (N.D. Ill. Nov. 18, 2010) (Shadur, Sen. J.).
Judge Shadur sua sponte issued an order regarding defendants’ answer. The Court dismissed affirmative defenses that were impermissibly inconsistent with the allegations in the Complaint. The Court also ordered defendants to present jurisdictional and Rule 12(b) defenses as motions, rather than conclusory affirmative defenses.
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Continue Reading Court Sua Sponte Orders Defendant to Present Affirmative Defenses and Motions

Ashley Furniture Indus., Inc. v. Value City Furniture, Inc., No. 10 C 5413, Slip Op. (N.D. Ill. Sep. 27, 2010) (Shadur, Sen. J.).
Nothing that his opinion was styled “Memorandum” and not “Memorandum Order,” Judge Shadur questioned the viability of plaintiff Ashley Furniture’s trademark infringement, false designation of origin and dilution claims. The Court opined that “no rational reader” could find that defendant Value City’s accused advertising violated Ashley Furniture’s trademarks or that Value City’s “accurate” use of Ashley Marks’ infringed the marks. The Court, however, did not strike the claims sua sponte. The Court also noted that, even if the “troublesome” claims were eliminated, Ashley Furniture’s Lanham Act unfair competition claims would still survive.
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Continue Reading Court Sua Sponte Questions Validity of Lanham Act Claims

Ashley Furniture Indus., Inc. v. Value City Furniture, Inc., No. 10 C 5413, Slip Op. (N.D. Ill. Aug. 31, 2010) (Shadur, Sen. J.).
Judge Shadur sua sponte ordered plaintiff Ashley Furniture to submit a brief memorandum citing the principal cases supporting Ashley Furniture’s trademark infringement claims based upon Value City Furniture’s “aggressive competitive advertising” including the use of Ashley Furniture’s trademark. The memorandum would help facilitate addressing the case at the Court’s initial status conference. The Court also noted that while the use of a competitor’s name in advertising was once verboten, it is now ubiquitous.
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Continue Reading Court Orders Pre-Answer Brief re Viability of Lanham Act Case

Idex Corp. v. Dripping Wet Water, Inc., No. 08 C 1114, 2008 WL 4372038 (N.D. Ill. Feb. 26, 2008) (Shadur, Sen. J.).
Judge Shadur sua sponte gave plaintiffs one week to amend their pleadings to resolve potential subject matter jurisdiction issues. The Court noted that the breach of a patent settlement did not create federal question jurisdiction because the agreement was about a patent. And the Court held that it was not sufficient for diversity jurisdiction just to plead the parties’ residences. Both residence and citizenship must be pled for the purposes of diversity jurisdiction. The Court, therefore, ordered plaintiffs to amend their complaint to plead both residence and citizenship, or otherwise prove jurisdiction. The Court also ordered plaintiffs to explain why the case was filed in the Northern District rather than in Texas where the parties had an ongoing suit or Connecticut where the litigation resulting in the settlement at issue took place.
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Continue Reading Breach of Patent Settlement Does Not Create Federal Jurisdiction

Helferich Patent Licensing v. ASUStek Computer Inc., No. 08 C 5189, Min. Order (N.D. Ill. Sep. 22, 2008) (Castillo, J.)
Judge Castillo sua sponte dismissed without prejudice plaintiff’s patent infringement complaint. The Court held that defendants were foreign entities without business entities in the Northern District. The Court allowed plaintiff to proceed with expedited jurisdictional discovery, and gave plaintiff until December 15 to refile an amended complaint, if they could, with more facts supporting jurisdiction and venue. The Court did not cite the Supreme Court’s Twombly decision regarding Fed. R. Civ. P. 8 pleading standards in its brief opinion. But this decision could flow from Twombly’s plausibility pleading standards.
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Continue Reading Court Dismisses Case Sua Sponte for Lack of Jurisdictional Facts

Garcia v. City of Chicago, No. 07 C 5828, Slip Op. (N.D. Ill. Dec. 10, 2007) (Shadur, J.).
Judge Shadur sua sponte issued this opinion striking certain denials in defendant’s answer. The Court held that it was improper to deny those allegations for which defendant stated it lacked sufficient information or belief to respond. Additionally, the Court noted that defendants had not provided the Court with courtesy copies pursuant to Local Rule 5.2(e).
Practice tip: Courtesy copies often get lost in the administrative shuffle after a complex filing. But there are few things more important than providing the Court with easy access to your papers.
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Continue Reading Party Cannot Deny Allegations for Which it Lacks Information