Court in Arkansas Trademark Case Orders Attorneys to Stop Bickering
The Western District of Arkansas found the defendant in civil contempt for violating a court order in Rotoworks Int'l Ltd. v. Grassworks USA, LLC, 2007 WL 3444261 (W.D. Ark. 11/8/07). The most interesting part of the ruling came from the court's frustration with the attorneys, which was already evident in the last order (previously posted 9/12/07).
The final straw came when the parties sent letters to the court without first getting permission to do so. Aside from suffering service defects, these letters were "presumptuous and inappropriate." The court stated:
This is not the first time that personal feuding between the attorneys has disrupted the orderly progress of this case and wasted judicial resources, and the Court will have no more of such conduct
The court then stated it may hold a hearing to examine the conduct of the attorneys and concluded with this directive:
It may be that, after such a hearing, it will be appropriate to refer the entire matter to the Arkansas Supreme Court on Professional Conduct for a review of the conduct of the attorneys throughout the case. In the meantime, the Court will insist that the attorneys focus their efforts and energies on the issues which affect their respective clients, and cease bickering among themselves.
