The more OSA legal strategies fail the better the circumstances for re-opening Kyle Brennan's case. For Kyle and Great Justice!
The work on Miscavige's quarters also included a tanning bed -- a photo of which former church executive Marty Rathbun put on his blog in 2010 to jab his former boss. "It was a big secret. No one was supposed to know that he had one," Brousseau says. http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runni...tology_john_brousseau_mareka_james.php?page=2
When I first saw that, I thought of a new use for Duct Tape. One midget psychopath, toasted extra crispy.
The tide is slowly but surely turning against the cult in the courts, recount of the last year in litigation.
1. Scientology's strategies in court are now well known and thus can be considered before going to trial. 2. Scientology's actual goals in court have always been to harass, delay, intimidate, and cause extra expense for the opposition. As time goes by the courts beging to understand this as well and don't like it. 3. Scientology has ALWAYS been in the wrong. It's just now that since they can't change their strategies, since it's their gospel, they're stuck with a now-losing hand. 4. There is strength in numbers. More and more ex's are losing their fear and going after the one who caused them pain and loss. 5. Mike Rinder needs to open up about what he knows so the wheels can more quickly fall off.
Let's see... What was Scientology's first court-room tactic in that case? Oh yeah, remove the lawyer.
Why is it that courts across the US do not make a finding that CofS are vexatious litigants for coninually abusing the legal process in this way? Can such a finding apply to the US as a whole? According to Wikipedia, a California court found exactly this in a case brought against Robin Scott (he of the purloined OTs fame) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vexatious_litigation#United_States These current cases reveal what everyone else already knows, and what the various laws sought to prevent - that Scientology is using the law as a means to harass - which is sickly ironic in a case such as Monique Rathbun's, since that harassment is why she is seeking a legal remedy in the first place.
The most recent ruling denying a disqualification motion by CoS was in a federal court by a federal judge. Should it be appealed, it will need to go to the next higher federal court level (district? circuit? one or t'other) You may get your wish, at least in federal courts nationwide, if CoS decides to appeal and they do as poor a job on it as they did with their initial motion. EDIT: Here's a patent law case in a federal court where a pattern of vexatious litigation was punished. http://www.patentlyo.com/patent/201...s-litigation-strategy-affirmed-on-appeal.html
One of the problems with getting a judge to declare the cult vexatious litigant seems to my non-lawyer eyes to be that they have actually succeeded in removing counsels before. Had they not, these motions would clearly be vexatious, but since they have (thanks to the worst aspects of the US legal system) been able to pull this off, these motions were justified as far as the the law is concerned. They have on the other hand had two judges in short order telling them quite sharply that they are not amused by these shenanigans, so it's not as if some parts of the legal profession are not aware of what's going on.
The bar to meet for a vexatious litigant is rather high, as it is an American right to settle disputes (with a real cause of action) through the court system and labeling someone a vexatious litigant puts barriers in front of that right. I've seen it happen, but it is not common. Constantly filing motions to disqualify your adversary's counsel is not the same as abusing the system and filing constant, meaningless, and dismissed suits (which is typically what triggers a vexatious litigant action). Because they have filed these meaningless motions against one lawyer may be significant, but Ray Jeffery may only get sanctions in Texas.
Oh well, the reactions we've had from the judges are probably the best we'll see then. The US court system is ... singular. Where I'm from such a motion would have been laughed right out of the court. Perhaps no coincident the cult has not really tried any legal manoeuvres here.
