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SCO successor Xinuos seeks full appellate rehearing in Unix lawsuit against IBM and Red Hat

A three-judge panel previously upheld a lower court decision dismissing claims over code contributed to Linux 25 years ago.

The short version

  • Xinuos plans to petition the full U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit to rehear its lawsuit against IBM and Red Hat regarding Project Monterey code contributed to Linux.
  • A three-judge panel of the Second Circuit affirmed on August 10 that Xinuos's claims were invalid and time-barred by the original licensing agreements.
  • Rehearings by the full bench are rarely granted, with one law firm noting the court accepts less than 0.03% of such requests.

Key facts

  • Xinuos, a legal successor to SCO, intends to file a petition for an en banc rehearing before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in its lawsuit against IBM and Red Hat.[Slashdot]
  • Xinuos alleged that IBM breached a non-exclusive license by contributing Project Monterey code to Linux 25 years ago.[Slashdot]
  • On August 10, a three-judge appellate panel upheld a U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York ruling against Xinuos, deciding the claim was invalid and the deadline to litigate had passed.[Slashdot]
  • The Second Circuit panel ruled that Xinuos attempted to frame its argument around licensing but fundamentally argued an ownership issue that is now time-barred.[Slashdot]
  • According to law firm Kaplan, the Second Circuit grants full bench reviews in less than 0.03 percent of cases.[Slashdot]

What remains uncertain

  • It remains uncertain whether the Second Circuit will grant Xinuos's petition for a full bench rehearing.[Slashdot]

Sources