Today marked the long-awaited courtroom showdown of notorious copyright porno trolls Prenda Law (previous posts) and United States District Judge Otis D. Wright II, the judge who figured out that Prenda was running something that looked a blackmail racket that involved systematic fraud against courts around the country. After stalling and fum-fuhing, Prenda’s lawyers and principals were dragged before Judge Wright, where they sat for a hearing that ran for 12 whole minutes before Wright furiously banished them from his courtroom. Ken “Popehat” White was there, and sent tantalizing tweets about the total trainwreck he’d witnessed, which he has now had a chance to write up in full.
In a nutshell, the Prendateers showed up and took the Fifth, refusing to speak. Their lawyer tried to enter some argument into the record, but the judge didn’t allow it. Prenda had filed no briefs, and had been called to answer basic, factual questions about lawsuits. Wright wasn’t happy about it. Ken has written up a list of likely consequences Prenda will now face. It’s not pretty. At very least, the firm and its activities are at an end. At most (though not likely), this could end in prison for the principals here.
Judge Wright grew steadily and visibly more outraged. “I want to know if some of my conjecture is accurate — and the only way to know is to have the principals here and ask them questions. This is an opportunity for them to protect themselves,” he said. But Steele’s lawyer confirmed his client would exercise his right to remain silent. Attorneys for Paul Hansmeier, Paul Duffy, and Angela Van Den Hemel confirmed their clients, too, would invoke their rights to remain silent. Judge Wright did not — unless I missed it — confirm whether Peter Hansmeier or Mark Lutz would answer questions.
An Opportunity To Be Heard
Heather Rosing, appearing for Paul Duffy, Angela Van Den Hemel, and Prenda Law, rose and asked Judge Wright for an opportunity to present “about a half hour” of argument on the points in his Order to Show Cause. Look: when you are a lawyer, representing a client, you have to stand up. You have to hold your ground even in the face of a furious federal judge. When a judge is yelling at you, however unsettling it is, you have to hold fast and remember you are there to represent the interests of your client against the terrible power of the court. Heather Rosing stood up, and has my admiration, whatever I think of her clients.
Judge Wright was uninterested in hearing legal argument, as opposed to testimony or evidence. “My clients have a right to a reasonable opportunity to be heard,” Ms. Rosing protested. “Excuse me?” thundered Judge Wright, probably thinking — not unreasonably — that Ms. Rosing’s clients could have filed briefs in advance to address any legal arguments they had, and that Ms. Rosing’s clients have been evading questions for months. Judge Wright began to count off the questions he wanted answered. “I’m looking for facts,” he said. He wanted to know who directs Prenda Law’s litigation efforts, who makes its decisions, whether there is another Alan Cooper, and what happens with the money Prenda Law makes from settlements. Ms. Rosing answered (wisely, and properly) that she could not personally testify to those things. Why, Judge Wright demanded, did Prenda Law conceal its attorneys’ financial interest in the cases? “There’s no evidence that they have an interest,” Ms. Rosing protested. “Excuse me?” Judge Wright boomed even louder. Were there windows, they would have rattled. “Have you read Paul Hansmeier’s deposition?” he demanded, referring to the bizarre deposition in which Paul Hansmeier failed to explain Prenda Law’s shadowy owners or flow of funds. “I have,” Ms. Rosing said, but stood her ground.
Prenda Law’s Attorneys Take The Fifth Rather Than Answer Judge Wright’s Questions