“On Thanksgiving eve, Apple filed court papers launching a searing attack on the court-ordered monitor who had been appointed barely a month earlier to oversee its compliance with an antitrust decree relating to its sale of ebooks” Roger Parloff reports for Fortune. “Apple accused the monitor, Michael Bromwich, a partner at the law firm of Goodwin Procter, of charging excessive fees, behaving in an ‘unfettered and inappropriate manner,’ relying on ‘secret communications with the court,’ evincing ‘incredibly disruptive’ mission creep, and acting in ways that threatened to turn him into an ‘quasi-inquisitional” offshoot of the federal judge who appointed him in violation of the constitutional principle of separation of powers.'”
“The more eye-catching of Apple’s claims were its accusations that Bromwich was already insisting on meeting every member of Apple’s executive team and board, including former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, Jr., and the company’s legendary product designer, Sir Jonathan Ive—neither of whom had anything to do with antitrust compliance issues, according to Apple,” Parloff reports. “In addition, the papers noted, Bromwich was demanding that Apple pay a 15% ‘administrative fee’ to his consulting firm on top of his $1,100 hourly rate and the $1,025 hourly fee of antitrust lawyer Bernard Nigro, who was appointed to assist him because of Bromwich’s lack of antitrust experience. (Nigro heads the antitrust group at the law firm of Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson, where Bromwich was a partner from 1999 to 2010.)”
“But legal fees are clearly not the crux of this dispute,” Parloff reports. “It was, rather, Apple’s last claim—accusing Bromwich of simultaneously playing a quasi-prosecutorial role and yet answering directly to the judge—which may be the most significant. It signals that Apple is taking aim not just at Bromwich, but also at U.S. District Judge Denise Cote herself. The immediate triggering event for Apple’s tirade was an order by Judge Cote issued on November 21, proposing that Bromwich be permitted to hold regular ex parte meetings with herself—that is, meetings where only she and he would be present and where no transcript would be made to preserve a record of what was said… In its Thanksgiving eve submission, Apple demanded to know if such ex parte meetings had already occurred, and suggested that such meetings, if they ever were to occur, would be a grounds for recusing Judge Cote.. ”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: This continuing kerfluffle likely stems from the fact that Denise Cote is a vacuous twit.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Readers “Arline M.,” “David O.,” and “JES42” for the heads up.]
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Off by one letter in that last word, MDN.
Haha was thinking the same!
Unbelievable. The more I think about this case the more I think that the government wants Amazon to run on fumes for as long as possible, since it helps the economy and therefore the current administration look better fiscally. Apple challenges them and the government far exceed their judicial powers to make an example of them.
Who cares if Walmart and Amazon create unsustainable businesses that destroy smaller business as long as they can point to a chart showing economic growth in the US.
It is an over reach to say the whole government is behind this. It is enough to say that Judge Cote is acting Inappropriately.
What gall, charging extra because he lacks the expertise to do the task he was appointed to do … “lack of antitrust experience” … what a judge, what an anal-orifice. Two incompetents, birds of a feather.
Usually you get shown the door or taken off the project if you don’t have the skills do the job you were hired to do—not allowed to charge MORE! Where can I get a job like that?
I’m not sure it’s an overreach when a case like this can add an upward arrow on the US economy over the course of 2 terms, but a staggering mess when they’re left with the monopoly that is Amazon afterwards.
Women should not be judges in the first place. They don’t have the intellect for it. Heck, hardly any men have the intellect for it.
You hit that bitch right on the nose, friend.
Baking cookies is about her speed.
Most excellent.
There are plenty of incompetent people in the world both female AND male. I have had the “pleasure” to work with both. Incompetency and/or stupidity is not gender (or age) specific.
Bad link to the original article
I wasn’t aware of the ancillary billing fees: 15% administrative fee to Bromwich’s consulting firm on top of his $1100 hourly rate; the $1025 hourly fee to former Bromwich law partner Bernard Nigro.
Thanks, Fortune!
And why appoint this $1100/hr dude that needs Bernie to show him the ropes? Why the hell didn’t the court just appoint Bernie?
Proving ex parte meetings between the judge and Bromwich will be difficult.
This case is just starting.
No it won’t. Federal courthouses require signing in and everything is covered by cameras 24/7.
That’s just the entrance. Proving an ex parte meeting will be difficult. Cote, if complicit, will have covered her tracks.
Apple’s appeal will be interesting.
Wrong. The logs and cameras will show him entering and leaving the building. If he doesn’t meet with any other personnel in the building, he’s meeting with Cote. Plus, the cameras in her courtroom, clerk’s chambers, the hallways leading to her courtroom, etc. will show him there.
Circumstantial at best.
It will aid in future litigation.
I am from the Government, and i am here to help!
No doubt he needs that exorbitant fee because he’s splitting it with the twit, er, I mean “judge”.
What a DISGUSTING situation. Disgusting Judge and Appointed Creep Of A Lawyer!
Cote is obviously accustomed to railroading defendants who aren’t able to defend themselves as Apple can. I hope that when the dust settles, she’s disbarred and behind bars.
-jcr
She should be kicked off the bench, disbarred, disrobed and tarred and feathered!
I hope the fees are being held in escrow, pending the outcome of the appeal.
But the question really is … does she swallow?
The real question is, “Do you have any brains or are you just a misogynistic jerk?”
The real question is, “Do you have any brains or are you just a self-anointed, sanctimonious jackass?”
Hey! Bible thumpers are people too.
What kind of BS is this …..
For those befuddled by MDN’s take, “kerfluffle” is a new word in MDN-ese, equivalent to the English “kerfuffle.”
MDN take is barbarous and sexist. Your credibility suffers when you act like an 11 year old.
Apple will be appealing this ruling.
this case is just beginning
Apple’s appeal is precisely why Apple made this filing. Apple is protesting and fighting Cote’s ruling at every step, and therefore can show the appellate court that it did everything in its power to get her to reconsider, to oppose the large fees, etc.
You guys didn’t think Apple was going to go quietly, did you?
Seeing as MDN hasn’t fixed the link yet, here it is:
http://features.blogs.fortune.cnn.com/2013/12/02/apple-ebook-court-monitor/?source=yahoo_quote
Denise Cote makes Lucy Koh look like Eleanor Roosevelt.
I didn’t know Lucy Koh looked like a lesbian.
Let’s express our disgust with the judges non-judicial temperament, without the vulgarity towards her being a female. We should have even more women as judges but we should have no judges who over-reach or tolerate outrageous fees. Problems is that Judges are lawyers permitting other lawyers to gorge themselves at great cost to the public good.
While I agree with your stance on not using vulgarity, particularly as Road Warrior used, your last sentence is ridiculous. The fees in this case are high, but that is the price the world’s most valuable company must pay because of the expertise required to handle the complexity of the situation. Experts in any field charge significantly more than those who have much less training and experience. And courts must appoint attorneys who are experts at what they do.
However, those billing rates are rather shocking.
Biz.
Michael Bromwich has no expertise in this particular area, hence the additional help from someone who does, Mr. Nigro. Bromwich deserves no pay above private.
So the idiot lawyer has the audacity to charge $1,100 an hour to learn about anti trust rules (and simultaneously throw his weight around) while his tutor gets $1,025 an hour to teach him?
So…
If the two get together for a training session and have an admin taking notes a one hour meeting costs Apple $2,500 or more?
And the judge and lawyer want to have truly secret meetings about this case in order to plan what more accusations to throw at Apple?
As far as I’m concerned Cote cross the line many, many months ago when she issued a statement on her position before the trial even started. (Nothing like making your mind up even before hearing all the facts.) Now she has gone so far that even the appeals court must see that she’s gone completely off the deep end.
Is this grounds for disbarment? Likely not. (Even if she’s already had secret meetings.)
Is this grounds for forcing her off the case? Probably (Especially if she’s already had secret meetings.)
Is this grounds for any sane justice on the appeals court to tell her to get her act together and stop this nonsense? Absolutely
It will be interesting to see how this plays out.
Well said, thank you for pointing out those salient points. This certainly is a travesty of justice.
Apple filed this to strengthen its appeals case and to show that the judge is biased against Apple.
Although you may dislike the stance you think the judge took, there is no need to present your misogynistic sexist attitude and weaken your case. It really just shows that you are in a league below the judge and makes it sound like you are irritated by the people in the trailer next to you.
Cupid Stunt.
If I were being paid $1,100 per hour, I would want to meet with every single Apple employee, including all the Apple store employees.
. . . and ex-Apple employees, and their families, and employees of Foxconn, and . . .
How do you call the dumbest lawyer in a courtroom?
Your Honor!
MacDailyNews Take: This continuing kerfluffle likely stems from the fact that Denise Cote is a vacuous twit.
“Twit and a half”. Lol
Cote is not a “vacuous twit” but an inquisitor of Fascist proportions worthy of the appellation Stalinist or Maoist who’s followers prosecuted the greatest men of both CCCP and China to confess to being heinous criminals at the behest of ideology driven idiots.
Today that disease has infected USA where police, FBI and other officials can’t add nor join dots when people point to problems (9/11, Madoff or 2008 Financial crisis) but will imprison everyone under draconian rules upon conviction.
I’m afraid that when I said previously that the only cause of Apple’s downfall would be Goldman Sachs entering and rifling Apple’s jewels, I was wrong. Well add Uncle Sam. It is third rate Fed officers that through nepotism have got good positions that will destroy Apple and ultimately USA with their Kafkaesque demands for confession of unknown crimes.*
Watch history occur that leads to the end of USA. Usama will be happy in paradise with only 70 virgins seeing USA destroy itself!!
* Puritanism is the catchword for USA. The Just must punish. Punishment whether in Salem or Cupertino must be exacted. Some one must suffer. But not the Feds or Judges or Lawyers or Cops or members of powerful unions or those that donate millions to re elect Congressmen or the rich or the influential or my friends not US but only THEM. Not Microsoft. Not Google. Not Samsung. But the honest, the hardworking, the fools who believe in honesty paying for music, paying a fellow man his due, giving a fellow respect regardless of race, creed, color, gender or wealth – they must PAY! they must Suffer!