U.K. Judge Crushes Tim Langdell

[Andy Chalk]

Andy, this article is a train wreck. Trying to follow the various pronouns and figure out who the claimant is and what their relation to the Edge trademark is by reading your article is nigh impossible. Please replace some of those he's with actual names and so forth. Ugh.

Perhaps you can explain what's confusing you, and how many different people you think I'm referring to. It's not very clear since, you know, your comment is a bit of a train wreck.

 

[JMeganSnow]

Andy, this article is a train wreck. Trying to follow the various pronouns and figure out who the claimant is and what their relation to the Edge trademark is by reading your article is nigh impossible. Please replace some of those he's with actual names and so forth. Ugh.

Perhaps you can explain what's confusing you, and how many different people you think I'm referring to. It's not very clear since, you know, your comment is a bit of a train wreck.

Very well:

Future Publishing brought suit against Langdell and his "Edge" businesses for breach of contract, breach of copyright and "passing off," and while Langdell offered up numerous and increasingly bizarre and implausible defenses against the claims, ultimately the judge was having none of it.

So here we have the "Edge" businesses owned by Tim Langdell. Simple.

Proudman's first move was to declare that "Jack Phillips," who had occasionally made witness statements on behalf of Edge Interactive Media in the past, was most likely "an invention of Dr. Langdell."

Who the hell is Proudman? First time you've mentioned the name, and it comes with no context to instruct us as to who he/she/it is.

The judge, however, stated that the action in fact made perfect sense since lawyers for Edge Games insisted back in 2009 that the company had been using the Edge logo, the same one used by Future's Edge Magazine, for many years "and they will not cease using it because they are entitled to use it."

Who is Edge Games? Is it owned by Future or Tim Langdell? You don't say. We're just supposed to know off the top of our heads?

This argument was rejected, as was the claim that he was granted permission in 2005 to use the logo, a statement denied by the man who allegedly granted the permission.

This is the worst sentence in the lot. First of all, you probably should avoid passive voice in articles, although I'm aware that many journalists do this in a bad fashion to make it appear as though things just happened instead of saying so-and-so did X. Doesn't mean you need to emulate them, however. It's not clear that the "he" in the first line is Langdell--I'm assuming it is, but maybe I'm wrong. And who allegedly granted the permission? The name should be used and the person's relationship to the proceedings established.

"He said this was what he called 'an estoppel representation,' by which I understood him to mean that he was using it as a deliberate challenge to the claimant to complain about the use. He asserted rather vaguely that this entitled him to a license by conduct," the judge wrote in her final ruling. "I do not accept his contention."

I understand this is a quote, but it's still packed with pronouns and thus vague.

Then things got really weird. Notwithstanding the fact that he admitted to copying the logo for his letterhead, Langdell also asserted in his defense that he had actually invented the Edge logo himself all the way back in January 1991. Proof of this was apparently contained on two 5.25" floppy disks, which were first mentioned by Langdell "in open correspondence" in May 2010 and didn't come up in this court case until November 29, 2010, as part of Langdell's seventh witness statement.

Ahh, here we have some improvement. Names instead of pronouns. Much better.

But when Future's own expert looked at it, he noted that while the disk was old, the 1991 content on it had actually been created by Windows 95 - which, as you might recall, was released in 1995, four years after 1991 - and then deliberately backdated.

Here's that passive voice again--in rather an odd fashion because operating systems don't create documents. Also that "which, as you might recall" bit is a.) needlessly verbose b.) somewhat patronizing.

"By October 2010 Dr. Langdell had seen Mr. Dearsley's report setting out the reasons why the information on disk 1 could not have been produced on the disk in 1991," she wrote. "Mr. Dearsley's view was that it would be possible to create a disk which did not show these software anomalies once the maker was armed with the Report's explanation of what was wrong with the previous version.

I'm assuming that Mr. Dearsley is the expert from Future games? You may have wanted to use his name earlier on in the article when you first mentioned the Future Games expert's testimony, then.

The truth is a prosaic one, namely that Dr. Langdell concocted disk 1 in support of his claim that he had invented the Edge logo in 1991. When this was exposed by the claimant's expert he constructed an elaborate explanation and created disk 3, having learned from the Report how to avoid the mistakes he made the first time."

Passive voice. Also that "he" right after "the claimant's expert" makes it sound like it was the expert who constructed the elaborate explanation. Ouch.

Proudman noted that "as Edge magazine's success grew, Dr. Langdell's behavior became increasingly burdensome."

Here's Proudman again. Who IS he/she/it? And what is Edge Magazine's relationship with the proceedings? Is it owned by Future? Dr. Langdell? You don't say and it makes the reader do too much assuming.

"although the total sum was paid into Dr. Langdell's bank account," to buy out all related trademarks, but then Langdell went ahead and "deliberately adopted a logo which is an obvious replica of the claimant's Edge mark."

Don't use quotes without attributing. That's just wrong. I'd guess this was additional stuff Proudman said, but you don't directly attribute it.

The judge also agreed that Langdell intentionally attempted to confuse consumers about his connection to Edge magazine, citing as one example a letter to Apple written in March 2009 in which he said, "Edge is extremely well known for its other game products and services such as Edge magazine."

So I take it Future owns Edge Magazine then?

The final conclusion is almost mercifully brief: "The claimant therefore succeeds in establishing all claims pursued at trial," the judge wrote.

Since the judge doesn't specify who the claimant is (and the reader may have forgotten in that bog of unspecified pronouns), you may have wanted to avoid using a quote here and just summarize the judgment in favor of Future Games.

Also, if you're going to accuse Langdell of being a trademark troll, you may want to provide links to earlier Escapist articles on the subject. I've read about it, but not everyone has.

 

[The Rogue Wolf]

Well, firstly, to the proud couple who named their daughter Justice, despite whatever naysayers you may have had to face at the time, I hereby grant you the Parents of the Millenium award. Because did you EVER get that name right.

Secondly, even someone as empathetic as me cannot feel in the least bit sorry for Langdell. His arrogance and greed went beyond the pale, and my only regret is that it took this long to finally grind his last ember of hope beneath the heel of common decency. Such an unrelenting and thorough smackdown could not have happened to a more deserving individual.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go laugh my ass off. I'll try to keep it down for anyone who might be sleeping.

 

[funguy2121]

It's a great day for minimalist rock guitarist weirdos everywhere.

Ha. Spellcheck approves "weirdo," but not "wierdo." 'Cos, y'know, it's not a word.

 

[CrafterMan]

Haha this guy was such a mad bastard! Good to see justice has finally been served!

Always a slippery slope.. down the mountain on a sl(edge) and into the lake!

(I am so sorry)

-JB

 

[Vohn_exel]

Wait...Justice Proudman? Thats a name? Of a Judge?

I know right?! That's freaking AWESOME!

I mean seriously, she needs to be a superhero!

 

[Andy Chalk]

Who the hell is Proudman? First time you've mentioned the name, and it comes with no context to instruct us as to who he/she/it is.

First sentence, third paragraph.

The sheer breadth of the smackdown laid on Langdell by Mrs. Justice Proudman of the England and Wales High Court (Chancery Division) is truly awesome to behold.

I think we're done here.

 

[restoshammyman]

EGDE EGDE EGDE EGDE EGDE EGDE EGDE EGDE EGDE EGDE EGDE EGDE EGDE EGDE EGDE

just thought i'd get it out now that it's copyright free.

well dear sir. that word was never copy writed, seeing as you miss spelled it.
its edge, and not egde.

 

[VondeVon]

Would that all serial liars (or people who honestly believe their own BS) could be cut down so publicly.

 

[WanderingFool]

There are other details, other legal points, other moments in which Langdell was caught with his pants down, but it becomes a bit of a pile-on after awhile and to be honest I started to feel just a little but bad for the guy. Not because he didn't bring this hammer down upon himself - he did - but because every imaginable aspect of his business and, to a large degree, his life was so thoroughly and mercilessly dismantled in the courtroom. I'm not a lawyer but I can't see where there's anything left for Langdell to salvage, and while I certainly won't mourn the end of his trademark trolling, I can't honestly find enjoyment in seeing a man so thoroughly and publicly humiliated and destroyed.

Luckily for me, I can find enjoyment in this. The consant (yet failing) attempts where just pathetic. He should have realized he was going to lose long before...

 

[RelexCryo]

Considering how cheap his lawsuit tactics were, this is good news. The guy deserved it.

Completely. Well said. This guy deserved it oh so much...