Latham & Watkins to Free Stress Tests?
A quick follow-up to Friday's post about Latham & Watkins possibly representing the Church of Scientology. The post was updated multiple times, and there were also lots of comments on it. Depending upon when you stopped reading, you may have come away with an erroneous impression.
At one point, we -- and some commenters -- expressed doubt that LW represents the Scientologists. But for the record, it now appears that Latham really IS representing the Church.
See this post from Radar Online, which has more details, and collects several legal letters sent out on behalf of the Church (thumbnails; click to enlarge) According to Radar, "[a]t least one Latham & Watkins letter was signed by David J. Schindler, the former Assistant U.S. Attorney who prosecuted the criminally mischievous nerd any self-respecting hacker wannabe worships, Kevin Mitnick."
More discussion, after the jump.
We've submitted multiple media inquiries to the firm's crack PR team, which usually responds with lightning speed. We haven't heard back at all (even though some of those requests were sent last week). Since this isn't a criminal proceeding, we'll draw an adverse inference from their silence, and cite this as evidence that the firm does represent the Church of Scientology.
And in the end, of course, there's nothing wrong with that (even if it might strike some as a little weird). If you were an entity as rich and powerful as the Church of Scientology, wouldn't YOU want to be represented by as rich and powerful a law firm as Latham & Watkins?
P.S. And when it comes to the legal realm, the Church and its followers play hardball. They don't look kindly upon negative mentions of the Church. See, e.g., here (demanding that US Weekly fire a writer who made a Scientology joke).
P.P.S. Please note that the instant post says nothing negative about the Church of Scientology. To the contrary, we praise the Church for its wealth, influence, and celebrity adherents. So please do not send us threatening letters on Latham stationery. Thank you.
Update: HAIL XENU!!!
Xenuphobia: Anonymous on Trial? Scientology Steps Up Skirmish [Radar Online]
Kirstie Alley's Lawyers Demand That 'US Weekly' Fire Writer Who Cracked A Scientology Joke [Defamer]
Earlier: The Church of Scientology: A Latham & Watkins Client?
(76) Comments
HAIL XENU!
Come on lat, pick a fight with the scientologists, the ensuing overreaction and publicity can only drive up page views. See Southpark v. Tom Cruise
ATL was just sued in the D.WY. for defamation and libel by the Church of Scientiology. Minimum Contacts PWN3D.
expressed doubt that LW is represents the Scientologists
as rich and powerful law firm as Latham & Watkins
"we praise the Church for its wealth, influence, and celebrity adherents. So please do not send us threatening letters on Latham stationery. Thank you."
Way to SERIOUSLY KNUCKLE UNDER !!!
"we praise the Church for its wealth, influence, and celebrity adherents. So please do not send us threatening letters on Latham stationery. Thank you."
Way to SERIOUSLY KNUCKLE UNDER !!!
Let's not forget what today is people -- APRIL FOOLS!
Church of Scientology has no sense of humor, took this post as threatening and has filed suit.
Pretty funny given that the "church" of scientology has been known to harass former members.
The Radar post that is linked to is here is dated 3/31/08 (not April Fools Day).
I hate Xenu.
I hate Scientologists.
I hate Latham and Wopkins.
Lat is following Kent Brockman's lead -- "I, for one, welcome our new insect overlords..."
Hope you've got a proxy server or a good lawyer 2:44.
3:01 - Don't make me laugh.
you're going down david!
2:44(2) made me laugh.
Lat, you pansy!!! Go on, insult 'em all you want! I got your back, brother!!
Klingons to 190
Xenu to 190 engrams
Personally I think it's great that Gawker - an online gossip rag owned by a profit-hungry Brit - is willing to take on Scientology (see http://gawker.com/5002319/church-of-scientology-claims-copyright-infringement) while abovethelaw - a legal blog run by a former AUSA and Wachtell alum - quakes.
Guys at my high school used to receive menacing letters from Latham & Watkins all the time. It was no big deal.
Activate the Fun Removal Machine.
Engage!
What the hells is a Xenu?
I'm going to sue you in England!
I'll sue you in England!
Anonymous appears to be very active on this board.
For L&W to represent a client like this, and use tactics like this, is pathetic.
Making allegations of participating in and leading a terrorist group is serious. For a threat letter to throw such accusations around, without giving any facts on which they rely (for accusations regarding either the group or the recipient) is pretty deplorable. To me, it looks like a pretty transparent attempt at intimidation.
The letter also appears to be uninterested in any dialogue to see if, for example, there was a misunderstanding. The goals appear to be only accusation and threats against individuals.
Shame on you, L&W.
JT does not belong to the Church of Scientology. JT thinks it's wacko.
Whoever sent that engagement letter to ATL has committed a major ethical violation.
Shame on Xenu for not taking the high road and setting a good example for all of us mortals.
Anybody scared to work that file???
Lat, the CoS isn't going to sue you. They're just going to send me, the kid who bullied you & pushed you away from your locker in high school, to pummel you & take your lunch money.
Be on the lookout.
I don't get the title of this post.
4:08 - have you ever been to Grand Central? The COS people offer free stress tests.
"Please note that the instant post says nothing negative about the Church of Scientology. To the contrary, we praise the Church for its wealth, influence, and celebrity adherents. So please do not send us threatening letters on Latham stationery."
I read that as at least partly satirical.
I didn't know anything about Scientology, but what I've seen so far has gotten me kind of intrigued (charging members thousands of dollars to learn about Xenu, harassment of critics, etc). I'd like to see more coverage of Scientology.
"Since this isn't a criminal proceeding, we'll draw an adverse inference from their silence, and cite this as evidence that the firm does represent the Church of Scientology."
So clever. I love Lat.
@!?r!1 |=00|5 <|4y
Can we get an inside source from L&W?
Is it "Anonymous". or "Anonymous."?
Here, read about Scientology to your heart's content: http://www.xenu.net/
4:53.
You want an inside source to breach their ethical obligations and disclose attorney-client communications or confidences? Sure, anything else? For example, we could also give you some insider trading info, just because you are you.
The Church of Scientology was my April Fools' joke on the world -- I never thought the facade would last this long! Epic win!
Bend over & take it from the Church of Space Alientology Latty boy.
I bet you like that!
April Fools! L&W SELFPWN3D. The prestige? Oh it's getting audited by some suppressive person.
USNWR has added average Body Thetan to its rankings. Law schools have quickly begun adding scholarships for the impoverished Scientologists of the world...several Scientologists working as staff attorneys have sued claiming that non-Scientologists were promoted to partner, before Scientology was invented. Skadden leads the charge and is now offering 18 weeks Scientology related leave. All Scientologists will be getting super-special bonuses and watching Tom Cruise and John Travolta films has been added to approved pro bono/career development hours. The ABA will soon announce that newly admitted attorneys must swear an oath to Xenu and all OCI interviews will henceforth take place at the local Church of Scientology.
thanks for the update! Hey who knew there were so many anonomi!
What other elite firms represent Scientology?
What other elite firms represent Scientology?
It was a decent shot, 3:55. Sorry they're not biting.
4:57(1):
"Is it "Anonymous". or "Anonymous."?"
It is "Anonymous." Periods and commas go inside of quotation marks. Colons and semi-colons go on the outside. As for question marks, it depends on whether you are quoting the question (inside) or the question mark is part of your sentence (outside).
E.g.
(1) To Mr. "Anonymous": Screw you!
(2) I hate the "anonymous"; they are so sneaky.
(3) I hate the "anonymous," the "meek," and the "humble."
(4) I would like to remain "anonymous."
(5) Did he say he was "anonymous"?
(6) He asked, "Why must this remain anonymous?"
7:31: Your post on grammar/punctuation would have been more impressive had you correctly made you of the inside quotation marks:
"Is it 'Anonymous'. or 'Anonymous.'?"
"7:31: Your post on grammar/punctuation would have been more impressive had you correctly made you [sic] of the inside quotation marks:"
Clown.
i wish someone would put together a legal defense organization to represent the critics of scientology against the baseless lawsuits, personal harassment, and threatening behavior this cult uses to stifle them.
How much can you bill for responding to a letter alleging threats from an anonymous internet group?
Being a L&W associate is incredible. Because you drive past a pile of unreviewed documents and ya KNOW, you're the only one who can help.
the church of scientology urges all to to watch our videos to gain a true perspective of our faith, they are available on youtube.
Latham sucks. I wouldn't take an offer from there if it was the last law firm offer on earth.
grammuh time - It depends on where you live. The Commonwealth uses quotations inside punctuation. American convention is the opposite. I always liked the Commonwealth version better. Maybe we can start a quotation-inside-punctuation revolution in America. Who's with me?
Terryo- I found the Southpark about Scientology on some foreign share site. Does that count?
4CHAN WILL FLOOD L&W COMPUTERS WITH /b
There are too many UPenn State grads in the Church. I wonder why the Church would want to take so many people from a number 77 law school? And I thought the Church was more popular in LA than Philly?
Man... that's like minus 1500 prestige points right there.
CoS kills people.
All, I am obviously no fan of Xenu, but let's keep things in perspective, okay?
Bad actions by members of the Church of Scientology over the last 30 days:
A CoS member pretended to be a L&W attorney to intimidate a college student who still lives with his parents.
Bad actions by members of "The Religion of Peace" over the last 5 days:
4/1/2008 Pakistan Matta
Two members of a tribal peace committee are blown to bits in a bombing attack on their vehicle by Muslim militants.
3/31/2008 Somalia Mogadishu
Islamic extremists sneak up to a local guard and shoot him in the head.
3/31/2008 Iraq Latifiya
Six Iraqis are kidnapped, blindfolded and shot to death by Islamic terrorists.
3/31/2008 Somalia Bule Burte
Twelve Somalis are killed when Islamists attack a small village.
3/30/2008 Thailand Yala
Islamists murder two civilians in separate attacks.
3/30/2008 Iraq Muqdadiyah
An al-Qaeda mass grave is discovered containing fourteen torture victims.
3/30/2008 Iraq Baghdad
Jihadis kill six Iraqis with a mortar strike.
3/30/2008 Iraq Baiji
Eight people are killed when Islamists detonate a car bomb.
3/30/2008 Iraq Baghdad
The remains of an American soldier, kidnapped and executed in captivity three years earlier, are identified.
3/29/2008 Afghanistan Girishk
Sunni extremists attack a power station with a bomb, killing two employees.
3/29/2008 Iraq Bani Saad
Three members of a family are wiped out by a Jihadi mortar.
3/28/2008 Afghanistan Nimroz
Two local cops are murdered when the Taliban attack a counter-narcotics unit.
3/28/2008 Thailand Pattani
A young man is shot to death in his truck by Muslim radicals.
3/28/2008 Iraq Baghdad
Two US civilians are killed in a mortar attack by Islamic terrorists.
3/28/2008 Iraq Basra
A woman with a baby in her arms is murdered by fundamentalists for 'unIslamic' activity.
3/27/2008 Iraq Diyala
A mass grave is discovered containing the tortured remains of thirty-seven victims of sectarian violence.
3/27/2008 Pakistan Kurram
Two women are among seven killed when Islamic terrorists fire a rocket into an ambulance.
3/27/2008 Iraq Baghdad
Jihadis kill at least five people in a series of mortar attacks.
3/27/2008 Iraq Baiji
A woman is killed when Islamic terrorists lob a mortar into a neighborhood.
3/27/2008 Iraq Samarra
A man and his son are brutally murdered by al-Qaeda. A child and woman are injured in the attack.
3/27/2008 Pakistan Kohat
Four days of violent attacks between Sunnia and Shia leave over fifty dead, including women and children.
3/27/2008 Thailand Yala
Seven children are among eight people injured when Islamists detonate a bomb attached to a motorcycle.
3/27/2008 Iran Ahwazi
Sa'ad Ibn Abi Waqqas Brigade terrorists open fire on a bus, killing seven Iranians.
3/27/2008 Pakistan Karachi
Two local intelligence agents are shot to death by al-Qaeda militants.
Fed Soc, there is plenty of evidence against the CoS that shows it had to do with the murder of at least one person and possibly others. Sure, other cults have killed more but CoS have definitely killed some.
Can we hire CoS (church of satan?) as mercenaries against Islamo-facists?
FedSoc - google "operation snow white" and "operation freakout" if you think Scientology isn't all that dangerous.
Fed Soc-
And how many media were sued for reporting the non-cult stories?
(also- you didn't mention the two cases of european sci-kidnapping/torture. omit much?)
Wow... didn't realize L&W was such a crappy and desperate firm.
Jews and Christians are oppressors, terrorists and murderers too.
By the way, fascism=nationalism. That means that those anti-immigration nutbags are fascists too.
11:59, 12:35, 12:43: Point well taken.
1:22: You are a true idiot (or a good parody).
The Federalist Society is for losers and pedophiles.
I hear XENU attends NAMBLA meetings in order to get new recruits.
10:55 - and SCOTUS Justices.
Keep up the work. We need all the info and lawyers we can get.
Actually could you break these letters down some more for us?
IANAL. i don't even play one on t.v.
is there someone on this forum that could tell me what the days might be like over at latham & watkins when stuff like this happens?
and please, if the truth is that nothing happens? could you make up something smacktabular?
ty
As a Scientologist, I find this article to be not very useful in my work of defending Scientology.
So I shall now list things a whole bunch of things that you ALL should be much more concerned about:
War
Hunger
Poverty
Nazi Communist Psychiatrists
The 4rth (or 5th) Marcabian Invasion Fleet
Now wouldn't you rather protest something else?
These are some of the things that Scientolology is trying to protect you from
Except for War, Poverty and Hunger, that is.)
And you are all very, very, very, ungrateful, to say the least!
What would Teeeegiack (that's Earth to you WOGS,) do without us.
(David Miscavige is very, very. very, very, very. very short.
Perhaps that is why he regularly beats people up. )
-inb4bgodley