Prenda's Brett Gibbs Finally Answers Some Questions; No Mention Of Alan Cooper

from the heading-for-a-showdown dept

With the news breaking of copyright troll firm Prenda Law, along with John Steele and Paul Duffy (who basically appear to be Prenda) suing a bunch of critics for defamation, it's worth remembering that the challenges to some of their existing lawsuits are still ongoing.

Brett Gibbs, who has been trying to weasel out of a variety of troubling situations concerning his acting as a lawyer for Prenda in California, was finally forced to answer some questions from Judge Otis Wright -- the same judge Gibbs tried to have kicked off the case once Wright started asking Gibbs to explain who the mysterious Alan Cooper really is. That effort failed (miserably) and last we'd seen, Judge Wright was threatening sanctions (including potential incarceration) against Gibbs for his, um, lack of candor.

Late last week, Judge Wright also consolidated a bunch of Gibbs' Prenda cases, so that they were all included for the sanction hearings on March 11, and also ordered Gibbs to answer some basic questions:

The names and contact information of the “senior members of the law firm that employed Mr. Gibbs in an ‘of counsel’ relationship.” (Gibbs Resp. 2.);

The names and contact information of the persons who make “strategic decisions . . . whether to file actions, who to sue, and whether to make a certain settlement demand or accept an offer of settlement.” (Gibbs Resp. 2.);

The names and contact information of the “owners of these copyrights.” (Gibbs Resp. 2.) If these owners are business entities, then provide in addition the names and contact information of the principals of these entities.

The names and contact information of the principals of AF Holdings LLC and Ingenuity 13 LLC.

Gibbs names John Steele and Paul Hansmeier as the "senior members" from whom he took orders, both when he was working with Steele Hansmeier and with Prenda Law. That's not surprising, but marginally interesting since Steele, at times, likes to pretend that he's not working for Prenda. The more interesting tidbit concerned the "CEO" of AF Holdings and Ingenuity 13, the two shell companies that Prenda has been using for a bunch of these lawsuits, which many believe are controlled by Steele and Hansmeier. Those are the companies who supposedly had "Alan Cooper" as their CEO, until Alan Cooper, who took care of one of Steele's homes, spoke up to the court, wondering if his identity was being used illegally. Apparently "Alan Cooper" is no longer CEO, but Mark Lutz is the CEO (of both companies).

You may remember Mark Lutz for his laugh-o-riffic appearance in that Florida Prenda case which consisted of a hearing worthy of Abbott and Costello. Lutz, who was identified as a "former" paralegal for Steele, was there to be the "representative" of the plaintiff, a company called SunLust. However, an absolutely hilarious exchange with the judge (which came about after she saw Lutz talking to Steele, who claimed he was just there to "observe" but had no actual involvement in the case) showed that Lutz was not a representative of the company, but a stand-in for Steele. Here's just a snippet.

THE COURT: Mr. Lutz, you're under oath, you have to give truthful answers or you face penalties of perjury. Do you understand that?
MR. LUTZ: Yes.
THE COURT: What is your position with Sunlust?
MR. LUTZ: I'm a representative of them.
THE COURT: What does that mean?
MR. LUTZ: Corporate representative.
THE COURT: What does that mean?
MR. LUTZ: They asked me to appear on various matters throughout the country.
THE COURT: Are you an officer of the company?
MR. LUTZ: I'm not, no.
THE COURT: Are you authorized to bind the company to any legal contracts?
MR. LUTZ: I am not.
THE COURT: Are you salaried?
MR. LUTZ: No, 1099.
THE COURT: So you are a 1099 contracted entity and you just go around and sit in a Court and represent yourself to be the corporate representative of the company?
MR. LUTZ: Yes.
THE COURT: Mr. Torres, did you know this was Mr. Lutz's position, a paid corporate representative?
MR. TORRES: No, Your Honor, I did not.
THE COURT: Who is the president of Sunlust?
MR. LUTZ: I'm unaware.
THE COURT: Who is the vice president?
MR. LUTZ: I'm unaware
THE COURT: Who is the secretary?
MR. LUTZ: I have no idea.
THE COURT: Who owns Sunlust?
MR. LUTZ: I do not know.
THE COURT: Who signs your checks?
MR. LUTZ: I believe somebody in the accounting department.
THE COURT: What is their name?
MR. LUTZ: To be honest with you, I can't read the signature.
THE COURT: Where is the accounting department located?
MR. LUTZ: I'm sorry?
THE COURT: Where is the accounting department located?
MR. LUTZ: I've received checks from California.

If you follow the FightCopyrightTrolls site, they've spent plenty of time tracking Lutz, who (that site claims) is Prenda's main "enforcer" in trying to get people to pay up. People receiving phone calls related to Prenda cases, asking the recipient to pay up to avoid getting sued, often report that it's Lutz who is calling (though it appears he may use another name on some phone calls). That "Alan Cooper" is gone from Ingenuity 13 and AF Holdings, and Lutz has been put in his place, adds even more weight to what most people suspected: that the companies are mere shells for Steele and Hansmeier, who seem to be trying to layer on more and more and more bullshit to avoid getting in serious trouble for their actions in these cases, seeking any way possible to try to demand money from people they accuse of infringing copyrights (or, in some crazy cases, accessing computers in an unauthorized manner).

In the answer, Gibbs also refuses to directly respond to Judge Wright's question to reveal the contact information for Steele and Hansmeier, but does offer to file them under seal. There is, of course, no mention of Alan Cooper.

I imagine the hearing on March 11th should be quite the spectacle.

Filed Under: alan cooper, brett gibbs, john steele, otis wright, prenda, prenda law, sanction
Companies: prenda, prenda law