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Novell's Evidentiary Objections to SCO's Exhibits, as text |
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Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 11:11 AM EDT
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Here are Novell's Evidentiary Objections to SCO's Summary Judgment Exhibits (PDF), as text. Novell is asking the Court to strike some of SCO's supporting evidence to their summary judgment motions.
Novell cites five grounds for its objections: (1) Inadmissible Parol Evidence, (2) Lack of Personal Knowledge, (3) Hearsay, (4) Best Evidence Rule, and (5) Improper Authentication. For reference, here are some links from the Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute to the portions of the Federal Rules of Evidence which Novell cites in its brief:
In addition, here's some information on
California Contract Law including a discussion of parol evidence. And finally, here's our earlier discussion.
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MORRISON & FOERSTER LLP
Michael A. Jacobs (pro hac vice)
Kenneth W. Brakebill (pro hac vice)
Grant L. Kim (pro hac vice)
[address]
[phone]
[fax]
ANDERSON & KARRENBERG
Thomas R. Karrenberg, #3726
John P. Mullen, #4097
Heather M. Sneddon, #9520
[address]
[phone]
[fax]
Attorneys for Novell, Inc.
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
DISTRICT OF UTAH, CENTRAL DIVISION
THE SCO GROUP, INC., a Delaware
corporation,
Plaintiff and Counterclaim-
Defendant,
vs.
NOVELL, INC., a Delaware corporation,
Defendant and Counterclaim-
Plaintiff.
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NOVELL'S EVIDENTIARY
OBJECTIONS TO SCO'S SUMMARY
JUDGMENT EXHIBITS
Case No. 2:04CV00139
Judge Dale A. Kimball |
(1)
INTRODUCTION
Defendant and Counterclaim-Plaintiff Novell, Inc. ("Novell") hereby objects to and
requests the Court to strike and disregard for all purposes the following evidence presented by
Plaintiff and Counterclaim-Defendant The SCO Group, Inc. ("SCO") in its Motion and
Memorandum in Opposition to Novell's Motion for Partial Summary Judgment on its Fourth
Claim for Relief, and in Support of SCO's Cross Motion for Partial Summary Judgment, PACER
Nos. 213, 224 ("1/17/07 Cross Motion"), its Reply in Support of its 1/17/07 Cross Motion
("3/19/07 Reply"), and its Motion and Memorandum in Support of its Motion for Partial
Summary Judgment on its First, Second, and Fifth Causes of Action, and for Summary Judgment
on Novell's Fifth Counterclaim, PACER Nos. 258-59 ("4/9/07 Motion"). Novell's objections
are based on five grounds: inadmissible parol evidence, lack of personal knowledge, hearsay, the
best evidence rule, and improper authentication:
Inadmissible Parol Evidence. The parol evidence rule is a substantive rule of
law that functions to exclude evidence contradicting the terms of an integrated
agreement. EPA Real Estate P'ship v. Kang, 12 Cal. App. 4th 171, 175-76 (1992)
("extrinsic evidence is admissible only to supplement or explain the terms of the
[integrated] agreement — and even then, only where such evidence is consistent
with the terms of the integrated document.") (emphasis added). Under the
governing California contract law, all extrinsic evidence introduced by SCO to
contradict the plain language of the APA and its Amendments is legally irrelevant
to the determination of this action. Id. ("according to this substantive rule of law,
when the parties intend a written agreement to be the final and complete
1 (2)
expression of their understanding, that writing becomes the final contract between
the parties, which may not be contradicted by even the most persuasive evidence
of collateral agreements. Such evidence is legally irrelevant"). This includes
"testimony of intention." Gerdlund v. Elec. Dispensers Int'l, 190 Cal. App. 3d
263, 267, 273, 278 (1987). As explained in Novell's summary judgment briefing,
Novell objects to each of SCO's proffered exhibits on the grounds that it is
inadmissible extrinsic evidence contrary to the express terms of an integrated
contract. Dore v. Arnold Worldwide, Inc., 39 Cal. 4th 384, 392 (2006) (affirming
summary judgment on wrongful termination claim because letter agreement that
employment was "at will" and could be terminated "at any time" could not
reasonably be interpreted as allowing termination for cause only, and hence
contrary extrinsic evidence did not create a triable issue of fact); EPA Real Estate
P'ship, 12 Cal. App. 4th at 176-77; Memorandum in Support of Novell's
Opposition to SCO's Motion for Partial Summary Judgment on SCO's First,
Second, and Fifth Causes of Action and for Summary Judgment on Novell's First
Counterclaim (Copyright Ownership), PACER No. 292 at 36-38; Novell's
Opposition to SCO's 1/17/07 Cross Motion, PACER No. 242; Novell's
Memorandum and Reply in Support of its Motion for Partial Summary Judgment
on its Fourth Claim for Relief, PACER Nos. 175, 237.1
2 (3)
Lack of Personal Knowledge. Admissible evidence must be based on a
witness's personal knowledge. Fed. R. Evid. 602; Fed. R. Civ. Proc. 56(e)
("supporting and opposing affidavits shall be made on personal knowledge, shall
set forth such facts as would be admissible in evidence, and shall show
affirmatively that the affiant is competent to testify to the matters stated therein");
Argo v. Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Kan., Inc., 452 F.3d 1193, 1200 (10th Cir.
2006) (upholding trial court's refusal to consider portions of a declaration lacking
personal knowledge, stating "[u]nder the personal knowledge standard, an
affidavit is inadmissible if the witness could not have actually perceived or
observed that which he testifies to . . . Accordingly, at the summary judgment
stage, 'statements of mere belief' in an affidavit must be disregarded") (citing
United States v. Sinclair, 109 F.3d 1527, 1536 (10th Cir. 1997), Tavery v. United
States, 32 F.3d 1423, 1427 n.4 (10th Cir. 1994) (internal quotations omitted));
Noblett v. Gen. Elec. Credit Corp., 400 F.2d 442, 445 (10th Cir. 1968) (pursuant
to Rule 56(e), affidavits must be made on the personal knowledge of the affiant
and must show that the affiant possess the knowledge asserted). The same
personal knowledge requirement applies to deposition testimony and other forms
of evidence approved for use on summary judgment by Rule 56(c). Greyhound
3 (4)
Fin. Corp. v. Willyard, 1989 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 16040 (D. Utah 1989).2 District
courts should disregard a declaration that is contrary to a deposition statement
"when they conclude that [the declaration] constitutes an attempt to create a sham
fact issue." Franks v. Nimmo, 796 F.2d 1230, 1237 (10th Cir. 1986). In addition,
a lay witness may only testify as to matters which he or she is competent to
testify. Fed. R. Evid. 701. Thus, a lay witness may not testify as to matters which
call for a legal conclusion, such as the interpretation and effect of a contract or an
amendment thereto. See, e.g., Evangelista v. Inland Boatmen's Union of Pac.,
777 F.2d 1390, 1398 n.3 (9th Cir. 1985) (in action by union member against union
alleging breach of duty of fair representation, opinion of union chairman as to
correct construction of collective bargaining agreement's grievance procedure
was inadmissible because it was legal conclusion).
Hearsay. Evidence may not be considered if it contains or is based on hearsay.
Fed. R. Evid. 802; Gross v. Burggraf Constr. Co., 53 F.3d 1531, 1541 (10th Cir.
1995) ("It is well settled in this circuit that we can consider only admissible
evidence in reviewing an order granting summary judgment. Hearsay testimony
cannot be considered because '[a] third party's description of [a witness']
supposed testimony is not suitable grist for the summary judgment mill")
(citations omitted). The hearsay objections made throughout Novell's Evidentiary
Objections to SCO's Summary Judgment Exhibits are based both on witnesses'
4 (5)
recital of out-of-court statements, and witness testimony based on inadmissible
hearsay (including testimony based on statements in out-of-court documents and
agreements). See, e.g., United States v. Brown, 548 F. 2d , 1194, 1205 (5th Cir.
1977) (excluding as based on hearsay IRS agent's testimony that she had audited
160 tax returns prepared by defendant and that 90 or 95 percent of them contained
overstated deductions, stating "a clearer case of hearsay testimony would be
difficult to imagine").
Best Evidence Rule. "To prove the content of a writing . . . the original
writing . . . is required, except as otherwise provided in these rules or by Act of
Congress." Fed. R. Evid. 1002. R & R Assoc. v. Visual Scene, Inc., 726 F.2d 36,
38 (1st Cir. 1984) ("Rule 1002 applies not when a piece of evidence sought to be
introduced has been somewhere recorded in writing but when it is that written
record itself that the party seeks to prove"). Here, SCO has offered testimony that
purports to recite the contents of the APA, its Amendments, and UNIX licensing
agreements, but which does not accurately recite the contents of those
agreements. This testimony should be excluded because the agreements
themselves are the best evidence of their contents.
Improper Authentication. Federal Rule of Evidence 901 states that
authentication must be "satisfied by evidence sufficient to support a finding that
the matter in question is what its proponent claims." Unsigned, undated
5 (6)
declarations fail to satisfy the authentication requirements of Rule 901, or the
self-authenticating provisions of Rule 902.3
OBJECTIONS
1. 11/9/06 Declaration of R. Duff Thompson, submitted as Exhibit 1 to the
Declaration of Brent O. Hatch, PACER No. 184 ("Hatch Decl."), and Exhibit 10 to the
Declaration of Edward Normand in Support of SCO's 4/9/07 Motion ("Normand Decl."),
PACER No. 260, and the 2/13/07 Deposition Transcript of R. Duff Thompson, submitted as
Exhibit 3 to the Declaration of Mark F. James in Support of SCO's 3/19/07 Reply, filed in
conjunction with PACER Nos. 247, 251 ("James Decl."), and Exhibit 11 to the Normand Decl.,
on the following grounds:
Inadmissible parol evidence. Mr. Thompson's testimony seeks to
contradict the APA's express exclusion of "all copyrights," as well as its
express inclusion of broad rights for Novell under § 4.16, and is
therefore legally irrelevant and inadmissible under the parol evidence
rule and the Federal Rules of Evidence.
6 (7)
Lack of personal knowledge. (Exhibit 1, ¶¶ 5-13; Exhibit 11 at 132-33).
Mr. Thompson was not involved in drafting the relevant portions of the
APA. The individuals involved in drafting the intellectual property
provisions of the APA were Tor Braham, Aaron Alter, and Shannon
Whisenant of Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati for Novell.
(Declaration of Tor Braham ("Braham Decl."), PACER No. 281, ¶ 5;
Supplemental Declaration of Kenneth Brakebill ("Supp. Brakebill
Decl."), PACER No. 296, Ex. 28, Alter 30(b)(6) Dep. 8:2-9:15). For
Santa Cruz, Jeff Higgins of Brobeck Phleger & Harrison was the
recipient of drafts of Schedules 1.1(a) and 1.1(b), listing intellectual
property to be included and excluded from the transfer of assets, which
were sent to Santa Cruz by Novell. (Supp. Brakebill Decl., Ex. 29).
Braham, Alter, Whisenant, and Higgins were all on the "Project Sleigh
Ride Working Party List," which listed persons to whom drafts of the
APA were circulated. (Supp. Brakebill Decl., Ex. 30; Supp. Brakebill
Decl., Ex. 31, Chatlos Dep. 101:10-12). Yet throughout
Mr. Thompson's proffered testimony, and without foundation, he offers
inadmissible speculation as to the responsibilities, actions, and intentions
of various third parties regarding the APA and its Amendments,
including Ed Chatlos, Michael DeFazio, Greg Jones, Santa Cruz, and
Novell. For example, Mr. Thompson speculates without foundation that
"I believe [the deal] included the bundle of the copyrights, at the time."
7 (8)
In reality, however, Thompson admits that he had no involvement in
drafting the contract that effectuated the sale:
Q. By the time of the asset purchase agreement you are no
longer in a legal function?
A. No. That's correct.
Q. And so this --and so in the --when you were involved
in the asset purchase agreement negotiations, who were you
relying on for the detailed drafting of the agreement?
A. Our counsel, Wilson Sonsini.
Q. Tor Braham in particular?
A. Tor and his team . . . . [H]e had people within his firm
who were specialists in these items that were probably
doing the bulk of the actual drafting.
(Supp. Brakebill Decl., Ex. 27, Thompson Dep. 30:22-31:12). Thompson
did not recall participating in "any specific discussions around copyrights"
or any "discussion with SCO about the excluded asset schedule" during
negotiation of the deal. (Id. 86:1-20). Tor Braham confirms that
Thompson "was not involved in negotiating or drafting the APA contract
language." (Braham Decl. ¶ 24(a)). Ty Mattingly testified that Thompson
was "not really involved in the details of the Novell, Santa Cruz
transaction." (Supp. Brakebill Decl., Ex. 33, Mattingly Dep. 70:17-71:1).
Thompson was "checked out" during the drafting of the agreement and
was "not in the office that often." (Id. 71:2-72:19). Accordingly, his
testimony lacks personal knowledge, and must not be considered.
8 (9)
Hearsay. (Exhibit 1, ¶¶ 4-7, 9-13). Mr. Thompson makes a number of
inadmissible assertions of fact based solely on out-of-court
conversations and documents (including internal meetings,
communications with third parties, the Declarations of Michael DeFazio
and Greg Jones, and Mr. Thompson's post-hoc review of certain
portions of the APA and its Amendments).
Best evidence rule. (Exhibit 1, ¶¶ 7-9). Mr. Thompson purports to
recite the contents of the relevant contracts, but misstates those contents.
This testimony should be excluded because the agreements themselves
are the best evidence of their contents.
2. 11/9/06 Declaration of Doug Michels, submitted as Exhibit 2 to the Hatch Decl.,
and Exhibit 17 to the Normand Decl., and the 3/28/07 Deposition Transcript of Doug Michels,
submitted as Exhibit 18 to the Normand Decl., on the following grounds:
Inadmissible parol evidence. Mr. Michels's testimony seeks to contradict
the APA's express exclusion of "all copyrights," as well as its express
inclusion of broad rights for Novell under § 4.16, and is therefore legally
irrelevant and inadmissible under the parol evidence rule and the Federal
Rules of Evidence.
Lack of personal knowledge. (Exhibit 2, ¶¶ 4-12, 15-23). Mr. Michels's
testimony lacks foundation as to the meaning of the intellectual property
provisions of the APA. Mr. Michels was involved in only two or three
meetings with Novell after the initial discussion about the deal. (Supp.
9 (10)
Brakebill Decl., Ex. 39, Michels Dep. 11:18-12:1). Michels did not "draft
any language of the Asset Purchase Agreement" or "review drafts" of it
and does not recall "even vaguely" any debates in which he participated
regarding the drafting of the APA. (Id. at 12:14-13:7). Michels testified
that he did not recall any discussion by anyone at either Novell or SCO
regarding whether UNIX copyrights were being transferred as part of the
APA. (Id. 50:20-52:5). Tor Braham, the principal person responsible for
drafting the APA and negotiating its contractual language on behalf of
Novell, was not aware of "any involvement" by Michels in the negotiation
and drafting of APA contract language. (Braham Decl. ¶ 24(h)). In
addition, Mr. Michels testified that he had no involvement with
Amendment No. 2. (Supp. Brakebill Decl., Ex. 39, Michels Dep. 19:25-20:4).
Thus, throughout his testimony, and without foundation,
Mr. Michels offers inadmissible speculation as to the responsibilities,
actions, and intentions of various third parties, including IBM, Santa Cruz,
and Novell (for example, stating without foundation at 134: "[a]nd so it
was implicit in everything we did, everything we thought. Every single
person on my team understood that. The lawyers understood. The business
development people understood it. The people at Novell understood it. I
mean, it — it's just so essential"). Accordingly, his testimony lacks
personal knowledge, and must not be considered.
10 (11)
Hearsay. (Exhibit 2, ¶¶ 4-12, 15-23). Mr. Michels makes a number of
inadmissible assertions of fact based solely on out-of-court conversations
and documents (including internal meetings, conversations with Santa
Cruz, communications with third parties, the Declarations of Jim Wilt and
Kim Madsen, and certain portions of the APA and its Amendments).
Best evidence rule. (Exhibit 2, ¶¶ 9, 11). Mr. Michels purports to recite
the contents of the relevant contracts, but misstates those contents. This
testimony should be excluded because the agreements themselves are the
best evidence of their contents.
3. 12/11/06 Declaration of Ed Chatlos, submitted as Exhibit 4 to the Hatch Decl.,
the 10/1/04 Declaration of Ed Chatlos, submitted as Exhibit 31 to the Hatch Decl., and
Exhibit 12 to the Normand Decl., and the 3/22/07 Deposition Transcript of Ed Chatlos,
submitted as Exhibit 13 to the Normand Decl., on the following grounds:
Inadmissible parol evidence. Mr. Chatlos's testimony seeks to
contradict the APA's express exclusion of "all copyrights," as well as its
express inclusion of broad rights for Novell under § 4.16, and is
therefore legally irrelevant and inadmissible under the parol evidence
rule and the Federal Rules of Evidence.
Lack of personal knowledge. (Exhibit 4, ¶¶ 4-12; Exhibit 31, ¶¶ 5-13;
Exhibit 13 at 39-40). Throughout his testimony, and without foundation,
Mr. Chatlos offers inadmissible speculation as to the responsibilities,
actions, and intentions of Santa Cruz and Novell (stating, for example, at
11 (12)
¶ 8 of his 12/11/06 declaration that "it was my understanding and intent
on behalf of Novell," and at ¶ 10 of his 10/4/04 declaration that "I
believe I would have known if the parties had agreed that Novell would
retain any UNIX copyrights"). Moreover, when asked about the basis
for his speculation as to the transfer of copyrights, the only reason
Mr. Chatlos could come up with was that if the copyrights were
included, he as lead negotiator knew it "would have fundamentally
changed the deal and changed the intent." But Mr. Chatlos was not
Novell's chief negotiator of the relevant provisions of the APA. In fact,
Tor Braham was the "primary representative of Novell in negotiating the
legal terms of the contract between Novell and Santa Cruz." (Braham
Decl. ¶ 5). Chatlos admitted that "a lawyer for Novell" "drafted the
Asset Purchase Agreement itself" and that Chatlos lacked the "legal
background" to do so himself. (Supp. Brakebill Decl., Ex. 34, Chatlos
IBM Dep. 82:11-83:5). Chatlos testified that he was not involved in any
negotiations concerning either including or excluding copyrights from
the transaction. (Supp. Brakebill Decl., Ex. 31, Chatlos Dep. 124:5-14).
Tor Braham confirms that Chatlos "did not draft the APA" and that
Chatlos was not "the Novell business person directing the drafting of the
contract." Braham "reported to and received instructions from David
Bradford [Novell's general counsel], not from Mr. Chatlos." (Braham
12 (13)
Decl. 24(c)). Accordingly, Chatlos's testimony lacks personal
knowledge, and must not be considered.
Hearsay. (Exhibit 4, ¶¶ 4-12; Exhibit 31, ¶¶ 5-13). Mr. Chatlos makes a
number of inadmissible assertions of fact based solely on out-of-court
conversations and documents (including internal meetings,
communications with third parties, and his post-hoc review of certain
portions of the APA and its Amendments, stating for example in ¶ 11 of
his 10/1/04 declaration: "I have reviewed Schedule 1.1(b) . . . with
attention to the question of whether Novell was to retain any UNIX
copyrights").
Best evidence rule. (Exhibit 4, ¶¶ 4, 6-10; Exhibit 31, ¶¶ 7-9, 11-12).
Mr. Chatlos purports to recite the contents of the relevant contracts, but
misstates those contents. This testimony should be excluded because the
agreements themselves are the best evidence of their contents.
4. 11/23/04 Declaration of Jim Wilt, submitted as Exhibit 5 to the Hatch Decl., and
Exhibit 19 to the Normand Decl., the 12/11/06 Declaration of Jim Wilt, submitted as Exhibit 48
to the Hatch Decl., and the 1/26/07 Deposition Transcript of James Wilt, submitted as
Exhibit 6 to the James Decl., and Exhibit 20 to the Normand Decl., on the following grounds:
Inadmissible parol evidence. Mr. Wilt's testimony seeks to contradict
the APA's express exclusion of "all copyrights," as well as its express
inclusion of broad rights for Novell under § 4.16, and is therefore legally
13 (14)
irrelevant and inadmissible under the parol evidence rule and the Federal
Rules of Evidence.
Lack of personal knowledge. (Exhibit 5, ¶¶ 5, 7-14, 16; Exhibit 48,
¶¶ 3-12). Mr. Wilt's testimony lacks foundation as to the meaning of the
relevant provisions of the APA. Wilt was not involved in drafting or
negotiating the language in those provisions, and has no personal
knowledge as to their purpose. In fact, Wilt does not recall drafting "any
of the language of the Asset Purchase Agreement" and believes that "the
lawyers" did the drafting. (Supp. Brakebill Decl., Ex. 40, Wilt Dep.
20:19-21:7). Ed Chatlos, on whose testimony SCO relies, testified that
Wilt "dropped out" in the latter half of the negotiations for the Santa
Cruz-Novell deal. (Supp. Brakebill Decl., Ex. 34, Chatlos IBM Dep.
184:12-185:7). Wilt concurs that he was "less active at the end of the
negotiations," when the APA was being drafted. (Supp. Brakebill Decl.,
Ex. 40, Wilt Dep. 20:12-15). Wilt testified that he did not recall anyone
from Novell stating that copyrights were being transferred. (Id. 57:10-59:17).
Tor Braham, the principal person responsible for drafting the
APA and negotiating its contractual language on behalf of Novell, was
not aware of "any involvement" by Wilt in the negotiation and drafting
of APA contract language. (Braham Decl. ¶ 24(i)). Wilt was not
involved in drafting or negotiating Amendment No. 2. (Supp. Brakebill
Decl., Ex. 40, Wilt Dep. 40:10-17). Wilt did participate in some internal
14 (15)
SCO discussions relating to Amendment No. 2 but had no memory of
what was said. (Id. 41:13-25). Yet throughout his testimony, and
without foundation, Mr. Wilt — who is not a lawyer — offers inadmissible
speculation as to the responsibilities, actions, and intentions of Santa
Cruz and Novell (stating at ¶ 14, for example, "I believe I would have
known if the parties had agreed or ever discussed the possibility that
Novell would retain any UNIX or UnixWare copyrights").
Hearsay. (Exhibit 5, ¶¶ 5-10, 12-13, 15-16; Exhibit 48, ¶¶ 3-12).
Mr. Wilt makes a number of inadmissible assertions of fact that appear
to be based solely on out-of-court conversations and documents
(including internal meetings, communications with third parties such as
his "superiors at SCO" and "Geoff Seabrook" (12/11/06 declaration at
¶ 12), and certain portions of the APA and its Amendments).
Accordingly, his testimony lacks personal knowledge, and must not be
considered.
Best evidence rule. (Exhibit 5, ¶¶ 9-10, 15-16; Exhibit 48, ¶¶ 4, 6-11).
Mr. Wilt purports to recite the contents of the relevant contracts, but
misstates those contents. This testimony should be excluded because the
agreements themselves are the best evidence of their contents.
5. 12/11/06 Declaration of Kim Madsen, submitted as Exhibit 6 to the Hatch Decl.,
and Exhibit 21 to the Normand Decl., the 11/4/06 Declaration of Kim Madsen, submitted as
15 (16)
Exhibit 33 to the Hatch Decl., and the 2/13/07 Deposition Transcript of Kimberlee Madsen,
submitted as Exhibit 7 to the James Decl., on the following grounds:
Inadmissible parol evidence. Ms. Madsen's testimony seeks to
contradict the APA's express exclusion of "all copyrights," as well as its
express inclusion of broad rights for Novell under § 4.16, and is
therefore legally irrelevant and inadmissible under the parol evidence
rule and the Federal Rules of Evidence.
Lack of personal knowledge. (Exhibit 6, ¶¶ 5-14; Exhibit 33, ¶¶ 5-29).
Throughout her testimony, and without foundation, Ms. Madsen offers
inadmissible speculation as to the responsibilities, actions, and intentions
of Santa Cruz, Novell, Steve Sabbath, Allison Amadia, and IBM (for
example, broadly stating at ¶ 8 of her 11/4/06 declaration, without
establishing her presence at all discussions regarding the APA, that "it
was never agreed, or even discussed, that Novell would be retaining any
copyrights to UNIX," and speculating at ¶ 20 that "if Steve Sabbath
believed that it was proposed that Amendment No. X would have
precluded Santa Cruz from terminating IBM's UNIX license agreement
upon a breach of that agreement, he would at a minimum have raised the
issue for discussion, and he did not"). In addition, Madsen's testimony
lacks foundation as to the meaning of the intellectual property provisions
of the APA. Madsen was a Santa Cruz paralegal. (Supp. Brakebill
16 (17)
Decl., Ex. 42, Madsen Dep. 6:24-7:2). Madsen had no recollection of
negotiating the relevant intellectual property provisions of the APA:
Q. Was it your testimony earlier that you did not recall
being involved in negotiating any specific provisions of the
asset purchase agreement?
A. I don't recall negotiating specific provisions.
Q. As you sit here today do you recall negotiating any
provisions relating to the UNIX copyrights in the asset
purchase agreement?
A. No.
(Id. 58:7-15). She did not recall providing feedback on "specific
provisions" either. (Id. 39:16-42:19). Madsen testified, "I don't recall
any conversations with Novell pertaining to copyrights." (Id. 79:16-22).
She does not recall Santa Cruz ever asking for the copyrights. (Id. 79:24-80:5).
Rather, she believed that the Santa Cruz team was simply
"assuming" the copyrights were transferring. (Id. 81:10-15). In addition,
at ¶ 4 of her 12/11/06 declaration, Ms. Madsen states only that she
"participated" in the negotiation, and "worked with and participated in
several meetings and teleconferences with the lead negotiators and others
on both sides of the transaction." This is insufficient foundation to testify
as to the intent of Santa Cruz and Novell. Tor Braham, the principal
person responsible for drafting the APA and negotiating its contractual
language on behalf of Novell, does not recall any specific interactions with
Madsen regarding the APA contractual provisions at issue. (Braham Decl.
17 (18)
¶ 24(j)). Accordingly, her testimony lacks personal knowledge, and must
not be considered.
Hearsay. (Exhibit 6, ¶¶ 4-14; Exhibit 33, ¶¶ 7-29). Ms. Madsen makes
a number of inadmissible assertions of fact based solely on out-of-court
conversations and documents (including internal meetings with Jim
Wilt, Allison Amadia, and Steve Sabbath, among others,
communications with third parties such as IBM, and her post-hoc review
of certain portions of the APA and its Amendments).
Best evidence rule. (Exhibit 6, ¶¶ 6, 8-13; Exhibit 33, ¶¶ 5, 7, 9, 12-13,
21-23). Ms. Madsen purports to recite the contents of the relevant
contracts, but misstates those contents. This testimony should be
excluded because the agreements themselves are the best evidence of
their contents.
6. 11/19/04 Declaration of Steven Sabbath, submitted as Exhibit 18 to the Hatch
Decl., and the 2/12/07 Deposition Transcript of Steven Sabbath, submitted as Exhibit 5 to the
James Decl., on the following grounds:
Inadmissible parol evidence. Mr. Sabbath's testimony seeks to
contradict the APA's express exclusion of "all copyrights," as well as its
express inclusion of broad rights for Novell under § 4.16, and is
therefore legally irrelevant and inadmissible under the parol evidence
rule and the Federal Rules of Evidence.
18 (19)
Lack of personal knowledge. (Exhibit 18, ¶¶ 3-6). Throughout his
testimony, and without foundation, Mr. Sabbath offers inadmissible
speculation as to the responsibilities, actions, and intentions of Santa
Cruz and Novell (stating as his foundation at ¶ 3 that he "participated
with others in numerous meetings and discussions leading up to the
APA"). As to the transfer of copyrights, Sabbath recently testified that
he did not recall "negotiating to any extent" "Paragraph A of
Amendment No. 2," the portion that refers to copyrights. He did not
recall "focusing on paragraph A to any extent." (Supp. Brakebill Decl.,
Ex. 46, Sabbath Dep. 33:11-20). Accordingly, his testimony lacks
personal knowledge, and must not be considered.
Hearsay. (Exhibit 18, ¶¶ 4-6). Mr. Sabbath makes a number of
inadmissible assertions of fact based solely on out-of-court
conversations and documents (including internal meetings,
communications with third parties, conversations with others about
IBM's legal arguments, and certain portions of the APA and its
Amendments).
Best evidence rule. (Exhibit 18, ¶¶ 3-4). Mr. Sabbath purports to recite
the contents of the relevant contracts, but misstates those contents. This
testimony should be excluded because the agreements themselves are the
best evidence of their contents.
19 (20)
7. 11/8/06 Declaration of Lawrence A. Bouffard, submitted as Exhibit 19 to Hatch
Decl., on the following grounds:
Inadmissible parol evidence. Mr. Bouffard's testimony seeks to
contradict the APA's express exclusion of "all copyrights," as well as its
express inclusion of broad rights for Novell under § 4.16, and is
therefore legally irrelevant and inadmissible under the parol evidence
rule and the Federal Rules of Evidence.
Lack of personal knowledge. (Exhibit 19, ¶¶ 5-41). Mr. Bouffard's
declaration is rife with foundationless speculation as to the intentions,
motivations, and conduct of third parties, including UNIX customers,
IBM, and the negotiators of the APA and its Amendments (at ¶ 29
Mr. Bouffard admits that he "did not negotiate the APA for Novell").
SCO submits no foundational evidence that Mr. Bouffard participated in
any discussion of copyrights. In addition, Mr. Bouffard improperly
speculates as to "common knowledge in the [UNIX] industry" and the
"common assumption among the parties entering into the UNIX license
agreements" (¶¶ 13, 15). Accordingly, his testimony lacks personal
knowledge, and must not be considered.
Hearsay. (Exhibit 19, ¶¶ 6-41). Mr. Bouffard makes a number of
inadmissible assertions of fact based solely on out-of-court
conversations and documents (including internal meetings,
20 (21)
communications with third parties, and his post-hoc review of certain
portions of the APA and its Amendments).
Best evidence rule. (Exhibit 19, ¶¶ 19-20, 29-31, 34-35, 38-40).
Mr. Bouffard purports to recite the contents of the relevant contracts, but
misstates those contents. This testimony should be excluded because the
agreements themselves are the best evidence of their contents.
8. 11/9/06 Declaration of Alok Mohan, submitted as Exhibit 32 to the Hatch Decl.,
and the 2/23/07 Deposition Transcript of Alok Mohan, submitted as Exhibit 4 to the James
Decl., and Exhibit 6 to the Normand Decl., on the following grounds:
Inadmissible parol evidence. Mr. Mohan's testimony seeks to contradict
the APA's express exclusion of "all copyrights," as well as its express
inclusion of broad rights for Novell under § 4.16, and is therefore legally
irrelevant and inadmissible under the parol evidence rule and the Federal
Rules of Evidence.
Lack of personal knowledge. (Exhibit 32, ¶¶ 3-11; Exhibit 6 at 138).
Throughout his testimony, and without foundation, Mr. Mohan offers
inadmissible speculation as to the responsibilities, actions, and intentions
of Santa Cruz, Novell, and IBM (making clear at ¶ 3 of his declaration
that he only "was involved at a high level, including discussions with
Duff Thompson, and executive at Novell, whom I understood had
overall responsibility for the transaction on the Novell side," yet stating
without foundation, "I believe I bought the whole business"). Mohan
21 (22)
lacks the personal knowledge to testify as to the meaning of the
intellectual property provisions of the APA. Mohan testified that he was
involved in the negotiations "only at a high level." (Supp. Brakebill
Decl., Ex. 38, Mohan Dep. 10:17-20). Mohan "was not involved" in
"specific drafting of the documents." (Id. 16:9-17:6). Mr. Mohan
testified that he had no involvement with Amendment No. 2. (Id. 200:6-15).
Mohan also testified that "the issue of copyrights in or out was not
discussed with me." He testified, "[Novell] did not tell me that they'd
kept it. They did not tell me they'd given it to us." (Id. 261:7-262:2).
Tor Braham, the principal person responsible for drafting the APA and
negotiating its contractual language on behalf of Novell, has never met
Alok Mohan. (Braham Decl. ¶ 24(e)). In addition, SCO relies on
testimony from Alok Mohan, Santa Cruz's then-CEO, to argue that the
press release upon which SCO relies was "joint." But Mohan testified
that he had no knowledge of whether the press release was sent to
Novell for approval. (Supp. Brakebill Decl., Ex. 38, Mohan Dep. 249:3-251:11).
Accordingly, his testimony lacks personal knowledge, and
must not be considered.
Hearsay. (Exhibit 32, ¶¶ 3-11). Mr. Mohan makes a number of
inadmissible assertions of fact based solely on out-of-court
conversations and documents (including internal meetings,
communications with third parties, his review of the Declarations of Jim
22 (23)
Wilt and Steve Sabbath, and his post-hoc review of certain portions of
the APA and its Amendments).
Best evidence rule. (Exhibit 32, ¶¶ 8-9). Mr. Mohan purports to recite
the contents of the relevant contracts, but misstates those contents. This
testimony should be excluded because the agreements themselves are the
best evidence of their contents.
9. 12/18/06 Declaration of William Murphy, submitted as Exhibit 34 to Hatch
Decl., on the following grounds:
Inadmissible parol evidence. Mr. Murphy's testimony seeks to
contradict the APA's express exclusion of "all copyrights," as well as its
express inclusion of broad rights for Novell under § 4.16, and is
therefore legally irrelevant and inadmissible under the parol evidence
rule and the Federal Rules of Evidence.
b.
Lack of personal knowledge. (Exhibit 34, ¶¶ 4-33). Throughout his
testimony, and without foundation, Mr. Murphy offers inadmissible
speculation as to the responsibilities, actions, and intentions of Santa
Cruz, Novell, UNIX licensees, and IBM (basing his knowledge on the
mere assumption at ¶ 5 that "I would not have been able to perform my
job over the years that followed had I not acquired an understanding of
what Novell intended to sell to Santa Cruz under the Asset Purchase
Agreement ("APA") which effectuated the sale"). SCO submits no
foundational evidence that Mr. Murphy participated in any discussion of
23 (24)
copyrights. Accordingly, his testimony lacks personal knowledge, and
must not be considered.
Hearsay. (Exhibit 34, ¶¶ 6-33). Mr. Murphy's declaration makes a
number of inadmissible assertions of fact based solely on out-of-court
conversations and documents (including internal meetings,
communications with third parties, and his post-hoc review of certain
portions of the APA and its Amendments).
Best evidence rule. (Exhibit 34, ¶¶ 10-19, 21-26, 28-30, 32-33).
Because the content and meaning of the APA and its Amendments are at
issue, and because those documents are available, Mr. Murphy's recent
testimony reciting the contents of those documents must be excluded.
10. 12/11/06 Declaration of William Broderick, submitted as Exhibit 50 to the
Hatch Decl., and Exhibit 15 to the Normand Decl., the 11/7/06 Declaration of William
Broderick, submitted as Exhibit 33 to the Normand Decl., and the 2/1/07 Deposition
Transcript of William Broderick, submitted as Exhibit 8 to the James Decl., and Exhibit 16 to
the Normand Decl., on the following grounds:
Inadmissible parol evidence. Mr. Broderick's testimony seeks to
contradict the APA's express exclusion of "all copyrights," as well as its
express inclusion of broad rights for Novell under § 4.16, and is
therefore legally irrelevant and inadmissible under the parol evidence
rule and the Federal Rules of Evidence.
24 (25)
Lack of personal knowledge. (Exhibit 50, ¶¶ 3, 7-8, 11-42; Exhibit 33,
¶¶ 4-27). Throughout his testimony, and without foundation,
Mr. Broderick offers inadmissible speculation as to the responsibilities,
actions, and intentions of Santa Cruz, Novell (including its
"predecessors and successors "), Microsoft, Hewlett-Packard, Texas
Instruments, Cray, IBM, and even "all licensees who licensed UNIX
System V" (at ¶ 13 of his 12/11/06 declaration). Broderick testified that
he did not recall any specific discussion about the transfer of copyrights
during APA transition meetings. (Supp. Brakebill Decl., Ex. 37,
Broderick Dep. 49:15-51:16). In fact, Broderick admits he "did not"
have "any involvement at all in negotiating the APA." (Id. 158:5-7).
Tor Braham has never heard of Broderick and confirms that Broderick
"was not involved in the APA negotiations or drafting." (Braham Decl.
¶ 24(d)). In addition, Bill Broderick testified that he had no involvement
with Amendment No. 2. (Supp. Brakebill Decl., Ex. 37, Broderick Dep.
144:12-16). Moreover, despite his role as a Contract Manager with no
personal knowledge of the transfer of assets in 2001, Mr. Broderick
improperly speculates at ¶ 8 of his 11/7/06 declaration that the 2001
Caldera transaction included the UNIX copyrights. Accordingly, his
testimony lacks personal knowledge, and must not be considered.
Hearsay. (Exhibit 50, ¶¶ 11-42; Exhibit 33, ¶¶ 7-8, 10-28; Exhibit 16 at
48-51). As SCO concedes in its 4/9/07 Motion at 12, "Mr. Broderick
25 (26)
testified that his understanding is based on (among other things)
Novell's explanation of the transaction during 'company-wide meetings'
as well as discussion in 'contracts transition team,' including discussion
about 'changing the copyright notices in the source code to Santa Cruz
Operation, Inc.'" Indeed, Mr. Broderick makes a number of
inadmissible assertions of fact based solely on out-of-court
conversations and documents (including internal meetings,
communications with third parties, "reading the declaration of David
McCrabb," reviewing UNIX licenses, and his post-hoc review of certain
portions of the APA and its Amendments). None of this testimony can
survive the hearsay rule.
Best evidence rule. (Exhibit 50, ¶¶ 12-20, 22-27, 29-36; Exhibit 33,
¶¶ 14-15, 25-28). Mr. Broderick purports to recite the contents of the
relevant contracts, but misstates those contents. This testimony should
be excluded because the agreements themselves are the best evidence of
their contents.
11. 12/11/06 Declaration of John Maciaszek, submitted as Exhibit 51 to Hatch
Decl., and the 11/9/06 Declaration of John Maciaszek, submitted as Exhibit 34 to the Normand
Decl., on the following grounds:
Inadmissible parol evidence. Mr. Maciaszek's testimony seeks to
contradict the APA's express exclusion of "all copyrights," as well as its
express inclusion of broad rights for Novell under § 4.16, and is
26 (27)
therefore legally irrelevant and inadmissible under the parol evidence
rule and the Federal Rules of Evidence.
Lack of personal knowledge. (Exhibit 51, ¶¶ 1-32; Exhibit 34, ¶¶ 4-5, 7-27).
Throughout his testimony, and without foundation, Mr. Maciaszek
offers inadmissible speculation as to the responsibilities, actions, and
intentions of Santa Cruz, Novell (including its "predecessors and
successors "), Microsoft, IBM, and "all licensees who licensed UNIX
System V" (12/11/06 declaration at ¶ 10, and testifying at ¶ 18 as to "the
shared understanding of all" IBM, and other UNIX licensees). SCO
submits no foundational evidence that Mr. Maciaszek participated in any
discussion of copyrights (testifying at ¶ 2 of his 11/9/06 declaration that
his role was "prepar[ing] source code licenses," but testifying as to the
rights, obligations, and intent of the APA and its Amendments).
Accordingly, his testimony lacks personal knowledge, and must not be
considered.
Hearsay. (Exhibit 51, ¶¶ 7-32; Exhibit 34, ¶¶ 7-8, 10-27).
Mr. Maciaszek makes a number of inadmissible assertions of fact based
solely on out-of-court conversations and documents (including internal
meetings, communications with third parties, the Declaration of David
McCrabb, unauthenticated UNIX agreements, and his post-hoc review of
certain portions of the APA and its Amendments).
27 (28)
Best evidence rule. (Exhibit 51, ¶¶ 9-17, 19-23, 25-28, 30-32;
Exhibit 34, ¶¶ 12-15, 25-27). Mr. Maciaszek purports to recite the
contents of the relevant contracts, but misstates those contents. This
testimony should be excluded because the agreements themselves are the
best evidence of their contents.
12. 12/11/06 Declaration of Jean Acheson, submitted as Exhibit 52 to the Hatch
Decl., on the following grounds:
Inadmissible parol evidence. Ms. Acheson's testimony seeks to
contradict the APA's express exclusion of "all copyrights," as well as its
express inclusion of broad rights for Novell under § 4.16, and is
therefore legally irrelevant and inadmissible under the parol evidence
rule and the Federal Rules of Evidence.
Lack of personal knowledge. (Exhibit 52, ¶¶ 1-15). Throughout her
testimony, and without foundation, Ms. Acheson offers inadmissible
speculation as to the responsibilities, actions, and intentions of Santa
Cruz, Novell, and Cray (acknowledging at ¶ 5 that her understanding of
the terms of the APA stem from a company-wide meeting held after the
APA was executed, but nonetheless testifying — without any legal
training — as to the rights and obligations of the APA, and asserting
SCO's compliance with them). SCO submits no foundational evidence
that Ms. Acheson participated in any discussion of copyrights.
28 (29)
Accordingly, her testimony lacks personal knowledge, and must not be
considered.
Hearsay. (Exhibit 52, ¶¶ 5-15). Ms. Acheson makes a number of
inadmissible assertions of fact that appear to be based solely on out-of-court
conversations and documents (including internal meetings,
communications with third parties, and her post-hoc review of portions
of the APA and its Amendments).
Best evidence rule. (Exhibit 52, ¶¶ 6, 11, 14-15). Ms. Acheson purports
to recite the contents of the relevant contracts, but misstates those
contents. This testimony should be excluded because the agreements
themselves are the best evidence of their contents.
13. 11/10/06 Declaration of Darl McBride, submitted as Exhibit 59 to the Hatch
Decl., and Exhibit 37 to the Normand Decl., on the following grounds:
Inadmissible parol evidence. Mr. McBride's testimony seeks to
contradict the APA's express terms, and is therefore legally irrelevant
and inadmissible under the parol evidence rule and the Federal Rules of
Evidence.
Lack of personal knowledge. (Exhibit 59, ¶¶ 3, 7, 10, 12, 15-29, 31-33,
35-38). Throughout his testimony, and without foundation,
Mr. McBride offers inadmissible speculation as to the responsibilities,
actions, and intentions of Santa Cruz, Novell, Baystar, and IBM. SCO
submits no foundational evidence that Mr. McBride participated in any
29 (30)
discussion of copyrights. Accordingly, his testimony lacks personal
knowledge, and must not be considered.
Hearsay. (Exhibit 59, ¶¶ 3-29, 34-37). The declaration makes a number
of inadmissible assertions of fact that both directly relay out-of-court
statements (to IBM's Sam Palmisano, for example, at ¶¶ 22-23), and
which appear to be based solely on out-of-court conversations and
documents [including communications with and statements by third
parties (such as Karen Smith, Jack Messman, Greg Jones, Tony Befi,
Larry Goldfarb, Kim Jenkins and Sam Palmisano) and certain portions
of the APA and its Amendments).
Best evidence rule. (Exhibit 59, ¶¶ 7, 16, 19-20). Mr. McBride purports
to recite the contents of the relevant contracts, declarations, and
correspondence, but misstates those contents. This testimony should be
excluded because the documents themselves are the best evidence of
their contents.
14. Undated, unsigned Declaration of Geoff Seabrook, submitted as Exhibit 63 to
Hatch Decl., on the following grounds:
Inadmissible parol evidence. Mr. Seabrooks's purported testimony
seeks to contradict the APA's express terms, and is therefore legally
irrelevant and inadmissible under the parol evidence rule and the Federal
Rules of Evidence.
30 (31)
Lack of personal knowledge. (Exhibit 63, ¶¶ 3, 5-42). Throughout the
unsigned declaration, and without foundation, the purported declarant
offers inadmissible speculation as to the responsibilities, actions, and
intentions of Santa Cruz, Novell, and IBM. SCO submits no
foundational evidence that Mr. Seabrook participated in any discussion
of copyrights. Accordingly, his testimony lacks personal knowledge,
and must not be considered.
Hearsay. (Exhibit 63, ¶¶ 3, 5, 7-9, 11-13, 15-42). The unsigned
declaration makes a number of inadmissible assertions of fact based
solely on out-of-court conversations and documents (including internal
meetings, communications with third parties, and a post-hoc review of
certain portions of the APA and its Amendments).
Best evidence rule. (Exhibit 63, ¶¶ 11-12, 17-26, 28, 30-41).
Mr. Seabrook purports to recite the contents of the relevant contracts,
but misstates those contents. This purported testimony should be
excluded because the agreements themselves are the best evidence of
their contents.
Improper authentication. Neither the drafter (Brobeck, Phleger &
Harrison) nor the purported declarant has authenticated this unsigned
and undated document as a declaration of Geoff Seabrook.
15. 11/10/06 Declaration of Jay Peterson (Copyright Notices), submitted as
Exhibit 26 to the Normand Decl., on the following grounds:
31 (32)
Lack of personal knowledge. Mr. Peterson's declaration fails to lay the
proper foundation to identify each particular document examined.
Accordingly, his testimony lacks personal knowledge, and must not be
considered.
Hearsay. (Exhibit 26, ¶ 3). Mr. Peterson's declaration recites out-of-court
statements from a document, offered for their truth.
Best evidence rule. (Exhibit 26, ¶ 3). Mr. Peterson purports to recite the
contents of relevant documents, but misstates those contents. This
purported testimony should be excluded because the documents
themselves are the best evidence of their contents.
16. 2/10/07 Deposition Transcript of Robert Frankenberg, submitted as Exhibit 1
to the James Decl., and Exhibit 7 to the Normand Decl., on the following grounds:
Inadmissible parol evidence. SCO offers Mr. Frankenberg's testimony
to contradict the APA's express terms, making it legally irrelevant and
inadmissible under the parol evidence rule and the Federal Rules of
Evidence.
Lack of personal knowledge. SCO has not laid a proper foundation for
admission of its Frankenberg deposition excerpts because he lacks the
personal knowledge to testify as to the meaning of the intellectual property
provisions of the APA. Mr. Frankenberg is not a lawyers and did not draft
the relevant provisions of the APA, but instead entrusted others with
drafting a document that protected Novell's ongoing interests in UNIX:
32 (33)
Q. And as a result, you tasked your negotiating team with
making sure that the detailed draft of the Asset Purchase
Agreement winded its way between the goal of selling the
UNIX business to SCO but retaining the rights necessary
for Novell to protect its interest in the ongoing UNIX
revenue stream and the capitalization of that revenue
stream?
A. Yes.
(Supp. Brakebill Decl., Ex. 32, Frankenberg Dep. 64:14-21 (emphasis
added). Frankenberg signed the APA "on basis of the recommendation of
his team" and "did not review every item. " (Id. 68:12-17). Tor Braham,
the principal person responsible for drafting the APA and negotiating its
contractual language on behalf of Novell, confirms that Frankenberg "was
not involved in the negotiation or drafting of the contract language of the
APA." (Braham Decl. ¶ 24(f)). Frankberg testified that he "directed the
negotiating team to make sure that [Novell's] rights to enter into buyouts
after the acquisition closed were preserved." (Supp. Brakebill Decl.,
Ex. 32, Frankenberg Dep. 63:1-19). Frankenberg recalled "discussing"
with the negotiation team the fact that "retaining the UNIX copyrights
would facilitate Novell's exercise of rights with respect to capitalizing the
SVRX revenue stream." (Id. at 65:21-66:7). Frankenberg testified that it
was "possible" that the negotiation team excluded copyrights from the
transfer of assets to "effectuate" his "direction to try to make sure that
[Novell] could protect [its] right to do buyouts." (Id. at 85:8-15). In
addition, Frankenberg never testified to any personal knowledge of the
33 (34)
press release being approved by Novell. (Id. at 22:20-23:5). Accordingly,
the proffered excerpts of his testimony must not be considered for lack of
foundation.
17. 3/23/07 Deposition Transcript of Burt Levine, submitted as Exhibit 14 to the
Normand Decl., on the following grounds:
Inadmissible parol evidence. Mr. Levine's testimony seeks to contradict
the APA's express terms, and is therefore legally irrelevant and
inadmissible under the parol evidence rule and the Federal Rules of
Evidence.
Lack of personal knowledge. Without foundation, Mr. Levine offers
inadmissible speculation as to the intentions of Santa Cruz and Novell in
executing the APA. Levine testified that he "may have" worked on some
"early drafts" the APA but does not remember which specific provisions,
if any. (Supp. Brakebill Decl., Ex. 35, Levine IBM Dep. 179:3-8, 180:2-12).
He testified that he has no "understanding as to specifically what
intellectual property, if any, was or wasn't transferred" under the APA.
(Id. 180:21-181:13). Levine testified that he had no involvement with
Amendment No. 2. (Supp. Brakebill Decl., Ex. 22, Levine Dep. 190:11-22).
Moreover, Levine testified that the UNIX unit and its business files,
including the copyright registrations, remained in New Jersey throughout
the changes in ownership of the business. (Supp. Brakebill Decl., Ex. 22,
Levine Dep. 19:10-20:23). Levine further testified that during APA
34 (35)
negotiations, he had reviewed and marked up drafts of Schedules 1.1(a)
and (b) of the APA, which listed Included and Excluded Assets. He
revised the list of included assets, but did not add copyrights. He left the
exclusion of "all copyrights" intact while making other revisions to
intellectual property provision of the Excluded Assets schedule. He then
faxed his markup to Wilson Sonsini. (Id. at 71:19-77:18; Supp. Brakebill
Decl., Ex. 36). Wilson Sonsini then passed on Levine's comments to
Santa Cruz's outside counsel, Brobeck. (Supp. Brakebill Decl., Ex. 29;
Supp. Brakebill Decl., Ex. 22, Levine Dep. 80:19-81:12). However,
Levine recalled nothing further about his review and markup of Schedules
1.1(a) and (b). (Id. at 71:13-18; 72:14-18). Tor Braham received Levine's
comments on Schedules 1.1(a) and (b), but does not recall Levine ever
participating in APA negotiations with Santa Cruz. (Braham Decl.,
¶ 24(g)). Accordingly, the proffered testimony of Burt Levine lacks
personal knowledge and foundation, and must not be considered.
Best evidence rule. Mr. Levine purports to recite the contents of the
relevant contracts, but misstates those contents. This purported testimony
should be excluded because the agreements themselves are the best
evidence of their contents.
18. 3/23/07 Deposition Transcript of Maureen O'Gara, submitted as Exhibit 29 to
the Normand Decl., on the following grounds:
35 (36)
Inadmissible parol evidence. Ms. O'Gara's testimony seeks to
contradict the APA's express terms, and is therefore legally irrelevant
and inadmissible under the parol evidence rule and the Federal Rules of
Evidence.
Lack of personal knowledge. The excerpt of Ms. O'Gara's testimony
contains speculation as to the intentions of others, including Novell and
Chris Stone. Accordingly, her testimony lacks personal knowledge, and
must not be considered.
Best evidence rule. Ms. O'Gara purports to recite the contents of the
relevant contracts, but misstates those contents. This purported
testimony should be excluded because the agreements themselves are the
best evidence of their contents.
DATED: May 15, 2007
ANDERSON & KARRENBERG
/s/ Heather M. Sneddon
Thomas R. Karrenberg
John P. Mullen
Heather M. Sneddon
-and-
MORRISON & FOERSTER LLP
Michael A. Jacobs (pro hac vice)
Kenneth W. Brakebill (pro hac vice)
Grant L. Kim (pro hac vice)
Attorneys for Novell, Inc.
36 (37)
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I HEREBY CERTIFY that on this 15th day of May, 2007, I caused a true and correct
copy of the foregoing NOVELL'S EVIDENTIARY OBJECTIONS TO SCO'S SUMMARY
JUDGMENT EXHIBITS to be served to the following:
Via CM/ECF:
Brent O. Hatch
Mark F. James
HATCH JAMES & DODGE, P.C.
[address]
Stuart H. Singer
William T. Dzurilla
Sashi Bach Boruchow
BOIES, SCHILLER & FLEXNER LLP
[address]
David Boies
Edward J. Normand
BOIES, SCHILLER & FLEXNER LLP
[address]
Devan V. Padmanabhan
John J. Brogan
DORSEY & WHITNEY, LLP
[address]
50 South Sixth Street, Suite 1500
Minneapolis, Minnesota 55401
Via U.S. Mail, postage prepaid:
Stephen Neal Zack
BOIES, SCHILLER & FLEXNER LLP
[address]
/s/ Heather M. Sneddon
37 (38)
1 | Moreover, under the Federal Rules, evidence is relevant only if it has a "tendency to
make the existence of any fact that is of consequence to the determination of the action more
probable or less probable than it would be without the evidence." Fed. R. Evid. 401. Because
California contract law renders the proffered extrinsic evidence of "no consequence" to the
determination of the action, such evidence should be excluded under Federal Rules of Evidence
401 and 402.
|
2 | Pursuant to DUCivR 7-2, a copy of Greyhound Fin. Corp. v. Willyard is attached hereto
as Exhibit A.
|
3 | In addition, Novell objects to each of SCO's proffered deposition excerpts on the
grounds that they are improperly authenticated, and cannot be considered on summary judgment.
Specifically, SCO failed to include any reporter's certification on the deposition transcript
excerpts, and therefore has not properly authenticated those exhibits. "A deposition or an extract
therefrom is authenticated in a motion for summary judgment when it identifies the names of the
deponent and the action and includes the reporter's certification that the deposition is a true
record of the testimony of the deponent." Broadband Mgmt. Solutions, LLC v. Dish Network
Serv., L.L.C., 2006 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 8695 (D. Colo. 2006) (citations omitted); Fed. R. Evid.
901. Pursuant to DUCivR 7-2, a copy of Broadband Mgmt. Solutions is attached hereto as
Exhibit B.
|
|
|
Authored by: ankylosaurus on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 11:30 AM EDT |
For typos, mitsake --> mistake in the heading works well; the message should
give a context for it, of course.
---
The Dinosaur with a Club at the End of its Tail[ Reply to This | # ]
|
|
Authored by: ankylosaurus on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 11:32 AM EDT |
Please make links clickable as in the instructions, and remember to post in HTML
when you do so.
---
The Dinosaur with a Club at the End of its Tail[ Reply to This | # ]
|
- What exactly does the "coupon" say? - Authored by: Anonymous on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 12:30 PM EDT
- How do I get one? - Authored by: Anonymous on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 02:47 PM EDT
- Sun Open Source Java - Authored by: Anonymous on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 05:57 PM EDT
- Against perpetual copyright - Authored by: SpaceLifeForm on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 06:16 PM EDT
- Microsoft Opens Pandora's Box... Againagain - Authored by: jog on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 06:18 PM EDT
- The Simplest MS-Novel Explanation - Authored by: Anonymous on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 06:37 PM EDT
- OLPC in depth on 60 minutes right now - Authored by: Anonymous on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 07:24 PM EDT
- SugarCRM is not Open Source - Authored by: Anonymous on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 11:06 PM EDT
- Advertising Age on M$ - Authored by: jplatt39 on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 06:17 AM EDT
- Rob Enderle praising Linux - Authored by: Anonymous on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 08:02 AM EDT
- Patent nonsense - Authored by: JamesK on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 08:19 AM EDT
- "Ask yourself: Do 'ya feel lucky, punk?" - Authored by: Aladdin Sane on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 08:52 AM EDT
- Linux (Tux) in the Indy 500 - Authored by: Anonymous on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 01:41 PM EDT
- Bell Atlantic v. Twombly - Authored by: Anonymous on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 03:48 PM EDT
- UK ODF Petition Now Closed - Authored by: Simon G Best on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 05:09 PM EDT
- [NP] Microsoft Announces UFO-OOXML Translator Project with China - Authored by: Aladdin Sane on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 05:13 PM EDT
- Off-topic - Authored by: LaurenceTux on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 07:03 PM EDT
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- Congressman living on food stamps has PB&J confiscated by TSA - Authored by: Anonymous on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 07:46 PM EDT
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- Secrecy and Money - Authored by: SpaceLifeForm on Tuesday, May 22 2007 @ 12:28 AM EDT
|
Authored by: Anonymous on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 12:07 PM EDT |
If the Judge were to rule in favor of Novell, on the
question of parole
evidence, could we say therefore that
Novell is likely to win on the questions
of copyright
ownership, and that therefore IBM is likely to win most of
its
PSJs? [ Reply to This | # ]
|
- Can we say that the parole evidence ruling is a bellweather of both cases? - Authored by: LaurenceTux on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 12:50 PM EDT
- Can we say that the parole evidence ruling is a bellweather of both cases? - Authored by: Latesigner on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 12:51 PM EDT
- Why ? - Authored by: dmarker on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 06:50 PM EDT
- That's parol, not parole evidence - Authored by: Anonymous on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 07:01 PM EDT
- Can we say that the parole evidence ruling is a bellweather of both cases? - Authored by: Anonymous on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 07:17 PM EDT
- Not Exactly - Authored by: rsteinmetz70112 on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 09:46 PM EDT
- Not Exactly - Authored by: Anonymous on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 11:45 PM EDT
- Can we say that the parol evidence ruling is a bellwether of both cases? - Authored by: DaveJakeman on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 05:14 AM EDT
- It's the bell tolling for SCOG in both cases. - Authored by: Ian Al on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 05:29 AM EDT
- Can we say that the parole evidence ruling is a bellweather of both cases? - Authored by: Darigaaz on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 05:13 PM EDT
|
Authored by: cricketjeff on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 12:20 PM EDT |
Novell's lawyers need sanctioning too, this wanton bullying of helpless saps can
surely not go unremarked. It is one thing to show the weaknesses in an opponents
case but this is too merciless by far. I think it would probably be kinder to
have the BSF lawyers painlesly put to sleep by a vet.
We may need to start a "save the Shyster campaign" or "Royal
society for the prevention of cruelty to dodgy lawyers and their clients".
This wanton use of the law in support of a case threatens to stifle the
shake-down industry to its foundations!
---
There is nothing in life that doesn't look better after a good cup of tea.[ Reply to This | # ]
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- Sanctions on BSF aren't enough - Authored by: Anonymous on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 12:56 PM EDT
- Sanctions on BSF aren't enough - Authored by: JamesK on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 01:57 PM EDT
- Sanctions on BSF aren't enough - Authored by: Steve Martin on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 02:11 PM EDT
- Sanctions on BSF aren't enough - Authored by: Anonymous on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 07:15 PM EDT
- Sanctions on BSF aren't enough - Authored by: red floyd on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 07:30 PM EDT
- Sanctions on BSF aren't enough - Authored by: ine on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 08:35 PM EDT
- Making $RELIGION the official state religion... - Authored by: wvhillbilly on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 11:44 PM EDT
- Isms - Authored by: cricketjeff on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 04:41 AM EDT
- The word you are looking for is AGNOSTICISM - Authored by: Winter on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 05:11 AM EDT
- Isms - Authored by: Anonymous on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 07:36 AM EDT
- Isms - Authored by: Anonymous on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 04:33 PM EDT
- Isms - Authored by: Darigaaz on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 05:49 PM EDT
- Isms - Authored by: cricketjeff on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 07:22 PM EDT
- Isms - Authored by: Darigaaz on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 09:52 PM EDT
- Isms - Authored by: Anonymous on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 04:37 PM EDT
- Making $RELIGION the official state religion... - Authored by: kattemann on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 05:19 AM EDT
- Poppycock - Authored by: Anonymous on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 03:36 PM EDT
- Making $RELIGION the official state religion... - Authored by: nattt on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 04:42 PM EDT
- Making $RELIGION the official state religion... - Authored by: Darigaaz on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 05:45 PM EDT
- Making $RELIGION the official state religion... - Authored by: mrcreosote on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 11:31 PM EDT
- Making $RELIGION the official state religion... - Authored by: mrcreosote on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 11:41 PM EDT
- Making $RELIGION the official state religion... - Authored by: Anonymous on Tuesday, May 22 2007 @ 03:37 AM EDT
- Is NOT collecting stamps considered a hobby, or simply the lack of a hobby? NT - Authored by: Anonymous on Tuesday, May 22 2007 @ 04:07 AM EDT
- I don't think that's quite right - Authored by: Anonymous on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 03:11 PM EDT
- Sanctions on BSF aren't enough - Authored by: Darigaaz on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 05:28 PM EDT
- heh? - Authored by: Anonymous on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 05:08 PM EDT
- Sanctions on BSF aren't enough - Authored by: mrcreosote on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 09:12 PM EDT
- :) - Authored by: dmarker on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 01:47 AM EDT
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Authored by: Anonymous on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 01:04 PM EDT |
Ouch! Did they just equate *all* of SCOg's evidence with an attempt to create
sham issues of fact? Has anyone done the 1 to 1 comparison to see if there are
is *any* evidence left on the SCOg's side?[ Reply to This | # ]
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Authored by: sk43 on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 01:44 PM EDT |
Of all prior motions to strike part or all of a declaration that I have seen in
this case and in others, none have been granted. The reasoning is usually that
the testimony is irrelevant anyway, so the motion is unnecessary. Will that
happen here as well?
It is interesting that Novell has styled this filing as an Objection rather than
a Motion - presumably due to some procedural protocol.[ Reply to This | # ]
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Authored by: webster on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 03:34 PM EDT |
..
1. When people say GL is an unsurpassed teaching tool, this article and motion
can be exhibit A, a review of aspects of Civil Procedure and some of the Rules
of Evidence. It lays out and repeats often the five evidentiary grounds for
striking the proffered testimony.
2. The APA excluded copyrights from the list of transferred assets. SCO
submitted all this evidence to get around the APA. They need an amendment to
the contract to get around the contract. That's what contracts are for. If you
change your mind, you have to change the contract. Otherwise they wouldn't mean
anything.
3. Compare this to the Monopoly's problem with their Novell SLES coupons. It
ties the Monopoly promise not to sue Novell SuSe customers to SLES which has a
flexible GPLv2. [i.e. "GPLv2 or later."] They knew this and assumed
the risk of change. So Moglen is going to change the GPL to v3 which will
"explicitly" expand the Monopoly patent restraint promise to all GPL
licensees. It already "implicitly" does so. All the more difficulty
for the Monopoly, like SCO, to strain to get around the written documents. They
have caught the virus. It is not so bad. Certainly not as bad as sneaking GPL
code into a Monopoly Operating System.
4. Riddle: In American courts how many years does it take to read a contract?
---
webster
[ Reply to This | # ]
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Authored by: Anonymous on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 06:39 PM EDT |
Here's a question I'm wondering about for anyone who is more familiar with these
legal procedures:
Why did Novell put their objection that none of the declarations were properly
authenticated by the reporter in a footnote instead of listing it with the other
objections? Is that because such an error would not usually be sufficient by
itself to throw out evidence? If that's true, then why have the rule requiring
such authentication? If that is a forgiveable error, then is the lack of date
and signature of the drafter and declarant in Geoff Seabrook's testimony
considered that much bigger an error and so is called out more explicitly?
[ Reply to This | # ]
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Authored by: Anonymous on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 07:56 PM EDT |
BSF can no longer afford accredited depostion reporters? Or perhaps can no
longer afford to check that the reporters declare their transcripts true and
accurate records of the deposition? (and let the reporter be found guilty of
perjury in the contrary case.)
In addition, Novell objects to each
of SCO's proffered
deposition excerpts on the grounds that they are improperly
authenticated,
and cannot be considered on summary judgment. Specifically, SCO
failed to
include any reporter's certification on the deposition transcript
excerpts....
Amongst the 18 Objections are 11 Deposition
Transcripts, and Novell claims
all of these are improperly
authenticated? Somebody please pull the
plug on this case...[ Reply to This | # ]
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Authored by: Walter Dnes on Sunday, May 20 2007 @ 11:57 PM EDT |
> 18. 3/23/07 Deposition Transcript of Maureen O'Gara, submitted
> as Exhibit 29 to the Normand Decl., on the following grounds:
How on earth does she get to make a deposition regarding the intent of the
parties to the APA??? Does her coverage of "The Amityville Horror"
give her clairvoyant abilities???
Question... was her intervention re unsealing of documents in the IBM/SCOX case
before or after her deposition? Can a witness for one of the parties in a legal
case (SCOX) get involved as a media reporter in another legal case involving
that same party?[ Reply to This | # ]
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Authored by: Ian Al on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 05:21 AM EDT |
Once there is a final, written contract between the parties, the
parol evidence rule forbids the introduction in a court proceeding of any
previous agreements between the parties on the subject matter of the contract.
The parol evidence rule permits the judge or jury in a contract dispute to only
look at the written contract and not at any previous discussions or agreements
between the parties.
So the reams of parol evidence saying that
SCOG and Novell intended during negotiations to transfer the whole business
including the UNIX copyrights are inadmissible. The judge and jury are not
permitted to look at them!
Now, just let me look through those
depositions, declarations and moggish
ramblings,
no...
no...
no...
no...
no...
no...
... All
gone. --- Regards
Ian Al [ Reply to This | # ]
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Authored by: Anonymous on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 07:33 AM EDT |
From 260 and Exhibit 51/52 lists, it looks like Alok Mhoan, Robert Frankenberg,
R. Duff Thompson, Ed Chatlos, Bert Levine, William Broderick, Doug Michels, Jim
Wilt, Kim Madsen, Jay Peterson, Maureeen O'Gara, Stve Sabath, Lawrence Boufford,
William Murphy, John Maciaszek, Jean Acheson, Darl McBride and Geoff Seabrook
would be gone if all of these depositions are supressed from evidence.
That means only Ty Mattingly's 2007 deposition would remain.[ Reply to This | # ]
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- And why? - Authored by: Anonymous on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 07:51 AM EDT
- And why? - Authored by: Anonymous on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 12:51 PM EDT
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Authored by: GLJason on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 11:32 AM EDT |
Novell puts forth a case where a contract said a guy could be terminated for
any reason, yet all sides agreed they meant "any good reason" and
it didn't matter because the contract wasn't worded that way. Intellectual
property is mentioned both in "Included Assets" and "Excluded Assets". However,
the only included intellectual property are trademarks. Patents and copyrights
are specifically excluded. Even with amendment #2, contracts are only on the
excluded list. If amendment #2 were truly meant to convey copyrights, it should
have amended "included assets" to include copyrights in UNIX and Unixware but
exclude all others. That didn't happen.
All SCO has are people that
thought copyrights were being included. However, it doesn't appear that
a single one of them admitted to having any conversations about copyrights. The
only witness that admitted talking about copyrights specifically was the primary
drafter of the contract, and he explains in detail why copyrights were excluded.
The Novell Board of Directors specifically agreed to the contract after he
explained that Novell was keeping the copyrights.
[ Reply to This | # ]
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Authored by: The Mad Hatter r on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 07:43 PM EDT |
If Novell gets this through, what does TSCOG left? Not much methinks.
I've been following this almost from the start, and every time something happens
they have less left. If things keep going this way they will soon have
<b>negative</b> evidence, something that I would have thought was
impossible.
I really wish I knew on what basis this suit was filed? Oh, I know many of you
are convinced that this was a extortion attempt from the start. Me, I just can't
believe that anyone would be stupid enough to try something like that on IBM,
one of the oldest and meanest companies on the planet.
Yes, I know this is Novell, not IBM - but the details they are fighting over
here are the things that they needed to take on IBM in the first place. And I
guess I can believe in someone being that stupid, because we are seeing it.
---
Wayne
http://urbanterrorist.blogspot.com/
[ Reply to This | # ]
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Authored by: grouch on Monday, May 21 2007 @ 11:11 PM EDT |
Novell writes:
See, e.g., United States v. Brown, 548 F. 2d ,
1194, 1205 (5th Cir. 1977) (excluding as based on hearsay IRS agent's testimony
that she had audited 160 tax returns prepared by defendant and that 90 or 95
percent of them contained overstated deductions, stating "a clearer case of
hearsay testimony would be difficult to imagine").
I'm having
some difficulty with the clarity of the example. The agent is testifying about
audits she performed, so it's something she experenced rather than was told
about or read about or surmised. Is this hearsay because the agent was telling
about the documents instead of the documents themselves being entered as
evidence? Would it not be hearsay if the agent had confined her testimony to
just the fact that she audited instead of summarizing the results that the
documents would reveal?
--- -- grouch
"People aren't as dumb as Microsoft needs them to be."
--PJ, May 2007
[ Reply to This | # ]
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- Hearsay example? - Authored by: Anonymous on Tuesday, May 22 2007 @ 04:36 AM EDT
- Hearsay example? - Authored by: Anonymous on Wednesday, May 23 2007 @ 04:11 PM EDT
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