Pwned

I hate to be such a Slashdot copier, but I could pass this one up. It seems like Monster Cable is threatening another, smaller cable manufacturer - Blue Jeans Cable - with an infringement suit regarding some connector designs. Unfortunately, they didn't count on their target's president, Kurt Denke, being a former lawyer. In addition to firmly handing them their asses, he managed to be pretty funny about it. The following are some excerpts:

Read the patents narrowly, and Monster loses; read them broadly, and Monster loses. You are welcome to point out any error in my reasoning; but I have to say that I will be unreservedly surprised if you are successful in doing so.

Further, if any of these patents or trademarks has been licensed to any entity, please provide me with copies of the licensing agreements. I assume that Monster Cable International, Ltd., in Bermuda, listed on these patents, is an IP holding company and that Monster Cable's principal US entity pays licensing fees to the Bermuda corporation in order to shift income out of the United States and thereby avoid paying United States federal income tax on those portions of its income; my request for these licensing agreements is specifically intended to include any licensing agreements, including those with closely related or sham entities, within or without the Monster Cable "family," and without regard to whether those licensing agreements are sham transactions for tax shelter purposes only or whether they are bona fide arm's-length transactions.

Not only am I unintimidated by litigation; I sometimes rather miss it.