IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS
EASTERN DIVISION
e360 INSIGHT, LLC, an Illinois Limited Liability Company, and DAVID LINHARDT, an individual,
Plaintiffs,
v.
THE SPAMHAUS PROJECT, a company limited by guarantee and organized under the laws of England, a/k/a THE SPAMHAUS PROJECT, LTD.,
Defendant.
DEFENDANT’S MOTION FOR A STAY OF ENFORCEMENT OF JUDGMENT PENDING APPEAL
NOW COMES the Defendant The Spamhaus Project, by and through its attorneys Jenner & Block LLP, and requests that this Court stay the enforcement of the judgment entered against Defendant pending appeal pursuant to the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure 8(a)(1)(A) and Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 62 (b) and (d).1
In support of this Motion, Defendant states as follows:
1. On June 21, 2006, Plaintiff e360 INSIGHT, LLC filed suit against the Defendant in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois County Department, Chancery Division, alleging claims for tortious interference with contract, tortious interference with prospective economic advantage, defamation per se, and defamation per quod. Because the parties are of diverse
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1 Defendant expressly objects to this Court’s jurisdiction over The Spamhaus Project because it is based solely in the United Kingdom and does not conduct or transact business in Illinois. Moreover, Defendant reserves its arguments based on Plaintiff’s failure to properly effect service of process. These objections are made notwithstanding Defendant’s filing of this motion, and had previously been raised in the Notice of Removal and the Answer that was withdrawn with leave of this Court.
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citizenship and the complaint seeks damages for injunctive relief and punitive damages exceeding $75,000, this Court has subject matter jurisdiction. On The Spamhous Project’s Notice of Removal, the case was removed to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, on July 21, 2006.
2. In the Notice of Removal, filed on July 21, 2006, Defendant maintained that service had not been perfected against it. Further, Defendant filed an Answer that same day, expressly asserting its defenses based on a lack of personal jurisdiction and insufficient service of process.
3. On August 23, 2006, this Court granted Defendant’s Motion to Withdraw the appearances of prior counsel and its oral Motion for Leave to Withdraw its Answer to the Complaint. At the same time, this Court granted Plaintiff’s oral Motion for Entry of Default and converted the Temporary Restraining Order, entered on July 20, 2006 by the Circuit Court of Cook County, into a Preliminary Injunction.
4. On September 13, 2006, this Court entered an Order for Default Judgment in favor of Plaintiff and against Defendant.
5. On October 13, 2006, Defendant filed a Notice of Appeal in the Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, while expressly reserving its objections based on this Courts lack of personal jurisdiction and Plaintiff’s failure to effect proper service of process.
6. On October 26, 2006, Defendant also filed with this Court a Motion to Vacate the Entry of Default Judgment based on Rule 60(b). Among the arguments raised in that Motion, Defendant asserts that this Court lacks personal jurisdiction over The Spamhaus Project and that service of process was insufficient.
7. Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 62(b) and (d) and Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 8(a)(1)(A), this Court has authority to enter a stay of the default judgment pending the appeal and its own ruling on Defendant’s Motion to Vacate.
WHEREFORE, Defendant The Spamhaus Project respectfully requests that this Court enter an order staying enforcement of the default judgment pending a decision on Defendant’s Motion to Vacate or a final determination on its appeal. Defendant further requests that this Court waive the requirement of a supersedeas bond based on the Motion to Vacate filed contemporaneously with this Motion to Stay.
Respectfully submitted,
THE SPAMHAUS PROJECT
Dated: October 26, 2006 By: __s/Matthew M. Neumeier_
Matthew M. Neumeier
Craig C. Martin
Carrie A. Fino
JENNER & BLOCK LLP
330 North Wabash Avenue
Chicago, IL 60611
Telephone: (312) 222-9350
Facsimile: (312) 527-0484