We’ve been keeping an eye on Ryan Hamilton’s lawsuits against Scientology’s Narconon drug rehab facilities in part because they’re so thorough. The Las Vegas attorney has obviously done his homework, and in the complaints he’s filed, he lays out the history of Narconon and its many deceptions with detailed citations. With references to testimony in other cases, he’s clearly trying to anticipate all of the objections and moves that Scientology has made previously.
So what does Narconon do? You’re going to love this. In one of the four federal lawsuits Hamilton recently filed, Narconon’s attorneys have complained that Hamilton’s complaint is too detailed.
This Complaint consists of over 100 paragraphs, nearly 120 pages including exhibits, a full deposition transcript from a distinctly separate lawsuit filed in Dekal[b] County, Georgia, numerous conclusory statements, prolonged unnecessary quotes from books, “scientific” opinions, etc. The Complaint is argumentative, prolix, largely irrelevant, and is not “simple, concise, and direct” as required by Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 8(d).
Narconon’s attorneys — Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith — represent the Nevada facility that Hamilton’s clients Cathy and Michael Tarr are suing. They filed a motion to dismiss, and make other arguments that Hamilton’s complaint for the Tarrs goes on too long.
Hamilton quickly responded with his own filing, explaining that his complaint — while within federal guidelines for length — was describing a “bizarre, elaborate fraudulent scheme.”
Requiring a defendant to answer basic allegations about its own program is hardly unreasonable or burdensome. It does not violate Fed. R. Civ. P. 8, nor is it good grounds for a motion to strike or for a more definite statement. For all these reasons, the Court should deny Narconon’s Motion in its entirety.
Well, we don’t know what the judge will find, but the impression we get is that Hamilton is quick to counter whatever move Narconon’s attorneys dish out.
——————–
Posted by Tony Ortega on April 14, 2014 at 07:00
E-mail your tips and story ideas to tonyo94@gmail.com or follow us on Twitter. We post behind-the-scenes updates at our Facebook author page. Here at the Bunker we try to have a post up every morning at 7 AM Eastern (Noon GMT), and on some days we post an afternoon story at around 2 PM. After every new story we send out an alert to our e-mail list and our FB page.
Learn about Scientology with our numerous series with experts…
BLOGGING DIANETICS (We read Scientology’s founding text) 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25
UP THE BRIDGE (Claire Headley and Bruce Hines train us as Scientologists) 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43
GETTING OUR ETHICS IN (Jefferson Hawkins explains Scientology’s system of justice) 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14
SCIENTOLOGY MYTHBUSTING (Historian Jon Atack discusses key Scientology concepts) 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46
PZ Myers reads L. Ron Hubbard’s “A History of Man” | Scientology’s Master Spies | Scientology’s Private Dancer
