I have not had much time to dissect and comment on the order from Judge Barber in the Baxter/Paris case, sending them to scientology "arbitration," so this is a bit stale. I was prompted to do this now by the request from the p[plaintiff's lawyers to certify Judge Barber's ruling for appeal to the 11th Circuit. The quirks of the system do not allow an appeal from his order -- as it has not technically ended the case. It is now "stayed" pending the so-called arbitration. But because of the important and unique issues this order presents, they are asking the judge to certify his order for … [Read more...]
Scientology “Arbitration”: They make up the rules as they go along
The recent, very disappointing decision from the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in the Garcia case highlights once again the problem of trying to deal with scientology in the courts: they understand too well how to game the system. The old adage that when the facts are not on your side, argue the law is page 2 of the scientology playbook. Page one is: baffle them with bullshit disguised as "religious practices." Legal decisions are based on precedent: Precedent refers to a court decision that is considered as authority for deciding subsequent cases involving identical or similar … [Read more...]