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Keywords

lawsuitlitigationattorneypleacopyrightcivil procedure

plaintiffattorneydepositiondiscoveryappealpleamotioncopyrightplaintiff's attorney

Related Cases

Christian v. Mattel, Inc., 286 F.3d 1118, 2002 Copr.L.Dec. P 28,425, 52 Fed.R.Serv.3d 777, 62 U.S.P.Q.2d 1385, 02 Cal. Daily Op. Serv. 3176, 2002 Daily Journal D.A.R. 3975

Facts

James Hicks filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against Mattel, Inc. on behalf of Harry Christian, claiming that Mattel's Barbie dolls infringed Christian's Claudene doll sculpture copyright. The district court found that Hicks failed to conduct a reasonable investigation before filing the complaint, as the Mattel dolls had been created well before the Claudene doll and bore visible copyright notices. The court also noted Hicks' previous litigation misconduct and his inappropriate behavior during the proceedings, which contributed to the decision to impose sanctions.

Hicks brought suit on behalf of Harry Christian, claiming that Mattel's Barbie dolls infringed Christian's Claudene doll sculpture copyright. In its sanctions orders, the district court found that Hicks should have discovered prior to commencing the civil action that Mattel's dolls could not have infringed Christian's copyright because, among other things, the Mattel dolls had been created well prior to the Claudene doll and the Mattel dolls had clearly visible copyright notices on their heads.

Issue

Did the district court abuse its discretion in imposing Rule 11 sanctions on Hicks for filing a frivolous copyright infringement complaint against Mattel?

The Court of Appeals, McKeown, Circuit Judge, held that: (1) complaint alleging copyright infringement was legally and factually frivolous, for Rule 11 purposes, where the allegedly infringing work was created six years before the allegedly infringed work; (2) the district court did not abuse its discretion in concluding that plaintiff's attorney's failure to investigate fell below the requisite standard established by Rule 11; but (3) remand was required where the district court's orders, coupled with the supporting examples, strongly suggested that the court considered extra-pleadings conduct as a basis, in part, for the Rule 11 sanctions.

Rule

Rule 11 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure requires attorneys to conduct a reasonable investigation before filing a complaint and certifies that the claims are warranted by existing law or a nonfrivolous argument for extending the law.

Rule 11 provides in pertinent part: (a) Signature. Every pleading, written motion, and other paper shall be signed by at least one attorney of record in the attorney's individual name…. (b) Representations to Court. By presenting to the court (whether by signing, filing, submitting, or later advocating) a pleading, written motion, or other paper, an attorney or unrepresented party is certifying to the best of the person's knowledge, information, and belief, formed after an inquiry reasonable under the circumstances … (2) the claims, defenses, and other legal contentions therein are warranted by existing law or by a nonfrivolous argument for the extension, modification, or reversal of existing law or the establishment of new law; (3) the allegations and other factual contentions have evidentiary support or, if specifically so identified, are likely to have evidentiary support after a reasonable opportunity for further investigation or discovery.

Analysis

The court determined that Hicks' complaint was frivolous because the allegedly infringing Barbie dolls were created prior to the Claudene doll, making it impossible for them to infringe on the copyright. The district court found that a reasonable investigation would have revealed the lack of factual foundation for the claim. Although the appellate court agreed with the district court's findings, it expressed concern that the sanctions may have been influenced by Hicks' conduct outside the pleadings.

We hold that the district court did not abuse its discretion in determining that the complaint filed by Hicks was frivolous under Rule 11. In parsing the language of the district court's sanctions orders, however, we cannot determine with any degree of certainty whether the district court grounded its Rule 11 decision on Hicks' misconduct that occurred outside the pleadings, such as in oral argument, at a meeting of counsel, and at a key deposition.

Conclusion

The appellate court vacated the district court's sanctions order and remanded the case for further proceedings, emphasizing that any Rule 11 sanctions must be based solely on conduct related to the signed pleadings.

Consequently, in the face of undisputed evidence concerning the prior-creation of the Barbie dolls, the district court did not abuse its discretion by ruling that the complaint was frivolous.

Who won?

Mattel, Inc. prevailed in the case as the court upheld the sanctions against Hicks for filing a frivolous complaint.

We hold that the district court did not abuse its discretion in determining that the complaint filed by Hicks was frivolous under Rule 11.

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