On Aug. 5, the Arizona Cartridge Remanufacturers Association (ACRA) filed a motion for partial summary judgment against Lexmark, asking the court to rule that Lexmark, as a matter of law, sells its Prebate cartridges, rather than licensing them, as Lexmark proclaims.
“Prebate would fall if a judge rules that the license is invalid,” said an ACRA spokesperson.
A summary judgment takes place if the facts concerning some aspect of a case are not disputed -- then there is no need for a jury to decide those facts. In that situation, it is only necessary to have a judge decide the law. ACRA is seeking only partial summary judgment (on some issues), so even if ACRA prevails, a trial would still be necessary to decide the remaining issues.
Lexmark filed a motion for summary judgment prior to ACRA’s filing, asking the judge to determine that ACRA hasn't "presented anything to show what they’re doing isn’t legitimate,” said an ACRA spokesperson.
Aug. 19 is the last day for each side to file and serve opposition for the other side’s summary judgment. Each side will be able to respond to the other's opposition until Aug. 26; currently, the judge is set to hear the summary judgments on Sept. 9.
The progress in this case has been made possible by generous industry donations. But without continued support, critical future action in the case could be threatened, according to an ACRA spokesperson. For information on contributing and supporting the case, contact ACRA at www.supportacra.org.
For more information, see Ron Katz’s article “ACRA Filing for Partial Summary Judgment” in the September issue of Recharger Magazine.
