Watchmen Lawsuit Pt. 20: Is The End in Sight?

Outside of the December 24, 2008 summary judgment order, the new joint stipulation agreement between Fox and Warner Brothers in the Watchmen case is perhaps the biggest news in the case so far. Why? It pushes settlement off the immediate timetable and accelerates the determination of the biggest issue in the case: whether or not to shut down the Watchmen movie permanently.

The stipulation reflects an agreement between both studios on 9 different points. At the risk of over-simplification, I have summarized the points below. A link to the original document is provided at the bottom as usual.

Point 1: Fox is waiving any and all rights to seek injunctive relief for any claim or matter other than the one determined by the judge (i.e., distribution rights). In exchange, Warner Brothers is agreeing that if the judge believes an injunction is appropriate, Fox is entitled to stop release of the Watchmen movie.

Point 2: The scheduled January 20, 2009 non-jury hearing will be limited to the question of whether Fox is entitled to a permanent injunction on its distribution claim. The injunction application filed by Fox will be discussed in a different post.

Point 3: This point says that if the judge grants an injunction on January 20, Fox will immediately dismiss, without prejudice (subject to various terms) any and all claims in the case except its distribution claim.

Points 4-7: These points define the terms of any appeals by both parties, including pushing any determination of damages until after the Watchmen movie is released (if not enjoined later in this month).

Points 8-9: These points outline an understanding re: various civil procedure issues (res judicata, collateral estoppel, jurisdiction).

1. Joint Stipulation Agreement between Fox and Warner Brothers