This is part of a series of articles discussing recent orders of interest issued in patent cases by the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts.
In Kologik Capital v. In Force Tech., No. 1:18-cv-11168, Magistrate Judge Levenson issued an Order to Show Cause regarding the Parties' status as unrepresented litigants. This case involves a long-running business dispute between Plaintiff Kologik Capital, LLC and Defendants In Force Technology, LLC, Brandon-Copsync, LLC, and Brandon D. Flanagan. The Parties had been represented by counsel; however, counsel for both Kologik and counsel for Defendants withdrew from the case, such that all parties were unrepresented.
Local Rule 83.5.5(c) prohibits limited liability companies from appearing pro se. Accordingly, Magistrate Judge Levenson issued an Order to Show Cause giving the Parties thirty days to secure successor counsel and/or to file a status report regarding their efforts to do so.
In Cozy, Inc. v. Dorel Juvenile Group, Inc., No. 1:21-cv-10134, Magistrate Judge Dein granted in part Defendant Dorel's motion to bifurcate.
Dorel moved for bifurcation of its equitable claims against Plaintiff and asked that a bench trial on the equitable issues be held prior to any jury trial on the legal claims. While Plaintiff Cozy agreed that the court should bifurcate the equitable issues into a separate bench trial, Cozy disagreed as to the order in which the claims should be tried.
In light of the parties' agreement, the Court allowed bifurcation of the equitable and legal claims. The Court deferred to a later date a decision on the order in which the bifurcated claims would be tried.
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