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Judge Delivers World Of Warcraft-Inspired Decision
Posted by Mike Fahey at 1:20 AM on July 4, 2008
If I had to have a favourite judge, chief judge of the Delaware Court of Chancery William B. Chandler III would be the man. Chandler is famous for his deep understanding of the cases he rules on, from referencing 50 Cent to channeling Ray Charles for an opinion on a Coca-Cola case (baby-uh huh). Issuing a decision on the case of the Wayne County Employees' Retirement System seeking an injunction against the Activision-Blizzard merger, Chandler got all kinds of World of Warcraft philosophical.
In some ways, perhaps, the world of Mergers and Acquisitions is a massively multiplayer role playing game as well. Like in World of Warcraft and other games, the participants in the M&A field take on certain roles, interact in their own community, hone specialised skills, and even develop a unique, somewhat curious vernacular. One particular quest in the world of M&A is disclosure litigation. In the instance of disclosure litigation presently pending before this Court, the world of M&A meets the World of Warcraft.
All I can see is a man in a business suit with a yellow exclamation point over his head. Hit the jump for Judge Chandler's stunning conclusion.
In the role-playing game that is this disclosure litigation, both sides have played their respective roles well. Plaintiff has vigorously battled for additional information about the proposed transaction, and, indeed, additional information has been released by the Company during the pendency of this litigation. Likewise, defendants have responsively and effectively addressed the many variations of claims that plaintiff has proffered. Ultimately, however, there still remained three outstanding disclosure claims for the Court to resolve. Like any game, this one has rules, and the most essential rule of disclosure is materiality. Because the plaintiff could not establish the materiality of its final three disclosure claims, the motion for a preliminary injunction is denied. The July 8, 2008 meeting may proceed. GAME OVER.
I love this man.
In Chandler Opinion, World of M&A Meets 'World of Warcraft' Video Game [The Wall Street Journal via Game Politics]
Comments (AU Comments · US Comments)
There are currently no AU comments for this post.
phxhawke
Posted 2:46 AM 4/7/08
@jBusiness: If there were more people like him, school would have been so much better :)
phxhawke
freakout
Posted 2:34 AM 4/7/08
@wild homes is weathering cephalopod trouble!: You may want to skim it a bit, unless you're looking to put yourself into an irreversible coma. Law. Ugh. ;)
@ThursdayNext: This is OT, but I'd just like to say Best. Username. Ever. Jasper Fforde is a genius. And a crack addict. I suspect.
freakout
wild homes is weathering cephalopod trouble!
Posted 2:27 AM 4/7/08
@freakout: Thanks, I appreciate the link. I'll take a look. Cheers!
wild homes is weathering cephalopod trouble!
ThursdayNext
Posted 2:23 AM 4/7/08
@ThursdayNext: [news.bbc.co.uk]
[en.wikipedia.org]
Linked for those who don't like googling for further reading...
ThursdayNext
ThursdayNext
Posted 2:21 AM 4/7/08
@wild homes is weathering cephalopod trouble!: I have to agree with @jBusiness: and @freakout: though I admit the word lackadasical has negative connotations. The judgment is not being aimed at the rest of the judiciary or at legal scholars, it is aimed at the persons involved in the case. They deal in computer games, specifically in RPG's so referring to their case in terms that they use on a day to day basis this would surely serve to increase the clarity with which his judgment is delivered, just as Lord Denning's Cricket Judgment in Miller v Jackson or Judge Deborah Servitto's rapping judgment in Bailey v Mathers.
It's about speaking to your audience in a language they understand.
ThursdayNext
Cats
Posted 2:19 AM 4/7/08
@fdisk:
/cast Mass Dispel
/yell BUBBLE POPPING!
Cats
greyhoundbus
Posted 2:18 AM 4/7/08
This reminds me of
[www.theonion.com]
only real
greyhoundbus
Salen
Posted 2:11 AM 4/7/08
Lvl 50 Judge LFG!
Salen
fdisk
Posted 2:05 AM 4/7/08
Holy shit, greatest way to end a ruling...EVER! Specially if you picture in your head the image and sound of the gavel SLAM after "GAME OVER"
That judge must be a Paladin, because that's some seriously cool "Judgements" he's got there.
See what I did there?
fdisk
freakout
Posted 1:59 AM 4/7/08
@wild homes is weathering cephalopod trouble!: If that's all you're worried about, you just need to take one look at the actual judgement... [online.wsj.com]
31 pages of in-depth judging goodness! .....zzzzzzzzzzz. Apart from the amusing (quoted) intro and closing summary it's pretty dry stuff. I don't think there's much question as to his professionalism. He's just doin' it in style, baby.
freakout
wild homes is weathering cephalopod trouble!
Posted 1:58 AM 4/7/08
@Omnimon: That's a good point, and I'd considered it. I'm just worried his approach sits on one side or the other of the line the separates useful couching and poor decision-making. And of course, I don't profess to be any sort of expert, it's only my opinion. Cheers!
wild homes is weathering cephalopod trouble!
Omnimon
Posted 1:52 AM 4/7/08
@wild homes is weathering cephalopod trouble!: One vital part of a ruling, to create clarity, is to juxtapose it with another situation. Although the subject of his juxtaposition may not have been terribly 'professional', it was extremely poignant, applicable, and created a perspective from which the reason for his ruling could not be misunderstood.
Omnimon
Yokai
Posted 1:46 AM 4/7/08
His judge hammer must be an epic, probably got it in black temple.
Yokai
swordfish2eva1
Posted 1:46 AM 4/7/08
Judge Cardozo has some competition for my favorite judge of all time
swordfish2eva1
wild homes is weathering cephalopod trouble!
Posted 1:46 AM 4/7/08
@jBusiness, freakout: Please don't misunderstand me. I think it's totally hilarious. But it seems hilarious in a judge-on-an-afternoon-tv-show kind of way. For better or for worse, it's not really terribly professional. There are some occupations where a great sense of humor isn't really a selling point.
I'd love to meet the guy, hear his take on why he does things the way he does, but I'm not sure I'd feel comfortable with him hearing my case.
And jBusiness, I'm not sure I'd say a lackadaisical attitude is ever a positive thing when you're working. It's one thing to be proficient, and that's vitally important, but when you appear to be dicking around, that's just not a smart course of action. Obviously your technical chops matter the most, but the appearance of propriety is critical when you're a judge or something similar. If this guy was hearing my complaint, and kept cracking wise and being slyly allusive in his judgement, I'd kind of feel like I was getting jobbed-- because the humor covers up the appearance of proficiency. I'd say for a judge, transparency is of paramount importance. I need to know he's doing his job correctly, and the easiest way to accomplish that is to see his qualifications in every facet of his demeanor and behavior.
wild homes is weathering cephalopod trouble!
tony_important
Posted 1:45 AM 4/7/08
@Hdfisise: Why would you punish someone for being awesome?
tony_important
deathtastic
Posted 1:45 AM 4/7/08
Wow what a total badass... We need more rpg comparisons in court.
deathtastic
zomgYGGR
Posted 1:44 AM 4/7/08
It was probably an uber-nerdy clerk trying to be witty who wrote that decision and not the judge.
zomgYGGR
Mr.Sad
Posted 1:40 AM 4/7/08
what a totally awesome judge
i think we all enjoyed reading that, hearing it would have been even sweeter
but somehow i wonder how those in court reacted
if they didnt enjoy video games i believe they would have thought very little of poor old Chandler
Mr.Sad
freakout
Posted 1:37 AM 4/7/08
@wild homes is weathering cephalopod trouble!: Embrace the subversive. The world of legal judgements is a terminally boring one. If only all judges could relate to the subject matter as well as this, the modern legal system might not be such a joke...
freakout
jBusiness
Posted 1:36 AM 4/7/08
@wild homes is weathering cephalopod trouble!: It IS awesome.
People that act in positions of power with lackadaisical attitudes, yet a deep understanding of their job or an efficiency thereof, are rare and should be appreciated.
Think of it kind of like the old 'God has a sense of humour, look at the platypus' on a vastly smaller scale.
jBusiness
freakout
Posted 1:32 AM 4/7/08
Good to see he enjoys his work. The "whips" quote is worth posting as well:
"These hobbyists spend great amounts of time, effort, and money pimping their rides or tricking out their cars through such alterations as vertically-opening doors, bass-heavy audio systems, or highly-customized paint work . . . The world of whips* is a small one in which reputation matters greatly...
...
*Whip, as used in the name of defendant's company SponsoredWhips, is a slang term for an automobile. See, e.g., 50 Cent, Poor Lil Rich, on Get Rich or Die Tryin' (Shady Records/Aftermath Records/Interscope Records, 2003) (I let my watch talk for me, my whip talk for me, my gat [gun] talk for me, BOW!).
Just 'cause you're old doesn't mean you have to be out of touch!
freakout
Hdfisise
Posted 1:32 AM 4/7/08
Someone should get this man a nice cool coors light!
Hdfisise
(俗・ ) Grey Gecko
Posted 1:31 AM 4/7/08
Finally I understand the system!
(俗・ ) Grey Gecko
Shiryu
Posted 1:30 AM 4/7/08
Im reading it, but I still can't beleive it...
Shiryu
wild homes is weathering cephalopod trouble!
Posted 1:29 AM 4/7/08
That's just... well, it's kind of odd. I don't know if it's awesome or not-- I mean, it's awesome that he understands the situation clearly enough to be able to draw comparisons to the in-game environment of World of Warcraft-- but as neat as it is for gamers to catch this a have a quick laugh about it, I'm not sure his approach is the most professional thing. One could argue that so long as his humorous allusive peccadilloes don't obfuscate his point-- and this one doesn't-- then it's no harm no foul, but I'm not sure how I feel about a guy who essentially is burying easter eggs (and granted, these certainly aren't hidden) in his summary judgements.
wild homes is weathering cephalopod trouble!
surft
Posted 1:29 AM 4/7/08
He really does his research, nice.
surft
ShaggE
Posted 1:28 AM 4/7/08
That's made a thousand times more amusing by the fact that he looks like a pope.
ShaggE
SpishackCola
Posted 1:28 AM 4/7/08
Someone (random M&A lawyer) ran up against Kil'Jaeden (Judge Chandler)in Sunwell Plateau and got owned.
SpishackCola
reekon
Posted 1:27 AM 4/7/08
This guys would have seriously been more than a match for JT.
JT vs JC (Judge Chandler), IPPON!!! =D
reekon
jBusiness
Posted 1:27 AM 4/7/08
What an awesome judge. If everyone could channel subject matter like he could I think I'd enjoy every day a little bit more.
jBusiness
Marikir
Posted 1:25 AM 4/7/08
Very amusing.
Marikir
InsidiousTuna
Posted 1:24 AM 4/7/08
Excellent.
InsidiousTuna
EnigmaNemesis
Posted 1:24 AM 4/7/08
Nice ... we need more gaming representatives in an institution role.
EnigmaNemesis
Meohfumado
Posted 1:24 AM 4/7/08
Game over. Nice...but GG would have been more l33t.
Meohfumado
Jayl3w
Posted 3:34 AM 4/7/08
@Slust: Seconded!
If I'm ever needing to go to court, I pray to all thats fraggable I get this man as my judge. At least he'll be fair, rather then feel the need to make examples out of people.
Jayl3w
Slust
Posted 3:26 AM 4/7/08
I set the motion to clone this guy and make him our judicial system. Can I get a second?
Slust
Shadowmist
Posted 3:04 AM 4/7/08
Well, he seems rather intelligent. Either he gets out and does a lot of things, or he is close friends with people that do. Either way, he's awesome in my books.
Shadowmist
Drowner
Posted 4:07 AM 4/7/08
AHH! The ONE PLACE I thought Investmet Banking couldn't reach. It's official; I should just go to business school.
Drowner
Pombar
Posted 3:52 AM 4/7/08
This guy is a legend(ary Judge with a Gavel of +7 Gaming Humour).
Pombar
Spoony Bard
Posted 3:46 AM 4/7/08
Judge Warcraft for the win!
Very nice. :)
Spoony Bard
marklip
Posted 4:40 AM 4/7/08
GAME OVER! Brilliant!
marklip
Ajh
Posted 5:27 AM 4/7/08
This makes me feel better about living in Delaware...it really does.
Ajh
exaggeration17a
Posted 6:31 AM 4/7/08
Wow... not only a judge with a sense of humor, but one that really understands the inner workings of the matter he's presiding over! Judges like that are few and far between, unfortunately... I salute this man for his outstanding competency.
@reekon: It would be great if Judge Chandler was a member of the Florida Supreme Court. I'd love to see how he'd word his ruling against JT!
exaggeration17a
kwant
Posted 7:10 AM 4/7/08
omg this is incredible. good work.
kwant
Eirias
Posted 10:00 AM 4/7/08
I'm Judge Reinhold!
Eirias
Erwin
Posted 11:13 AM 4/7/08
@Eirias: Show some respect for Judge Reinhold! Sorry Judge.
Erwin
masterdingo
Posted 1:03 PM 4/7/08
@wild homes is weathering cephalopod trouble!: Maybe you're a decent guy to hang with, but I hope to the Great Googly Moogly in the sky that I never have to work with you in a professional environment. Humor is the one thing that separates us from animals or automatons. I would be honored to have this judge preside over any case that I brought before him as he obviously takes the time to understand the case before him on the terms that it's being presented. Joy man, it's good stuff, even in a professional environment. Did you you know that the prefix "pro" just means paid? Nothing else, just that.
masterdingo
Cor-Wii
Posted 1:00 PM 4/7/08
Give this man a T.V. show
Cor-Wii
Chewbenator
Posted 3:03 PM 4/7/08
... Isn't World of Warcraft supposed to be (to some extent) emulating real life? So it should be the other way around?
Chewbenator
maraxusofk
Posted 3:25 PM 4/7/08
Quick! nominate this man for supremem court justice future presidents of america! we need more win in the government.
maraxusofk
ThursdayNext
Posted 6:56 PM 7/7/08
@freakout: Cheers buddy, always good to meet someone literate on a forum...oh, hi everyone else...sorry. :)
ThursdayNext