Del. Judge Orders Nimitz to Show Cause Why It Shouldn’t Be Sanctioned

Senior U.S. District Judge Colm Connolly for Delaware gave Nimitz Technologies a week to Dec. 21 to show cause why it shouldn't be sanctioned for ignoring his Nov. 10 order to produce bank statements and other documents and communications that would enable the judge to determine the source of any third-party funding of Nimitz’s patent infringement lawsuits against Bloomberg, BuzzFeed, Cnet and Imagine Learning, said his memorandum order Wednesday (docket 1:21-cv-01247). The U.S. Appeals Court for the Federal Circuit denied Nimitz’s mandamus petition to block a lower court’s demand for its financial records, saying in a Dec. 8 order it hasn't shown a clear and indisputable right to such relief (see 2212090027). In so doing, the Federal Circuit also lifted the stay on Connolly’s order to produce the documents. In the days that have passed since the Federal Circuit’s denial of the mandamus petition, Nimitz has yet to produce any of the materials the judge demanded, nor has it asked for more time, he said. Had Nimitz made a deadline extension request, Connolly would have granted it, he said. If Nimitz shows cause for its failure to comply with the order, he would “still be inclined to grant such a request,” he said.