Dear Threaders,
It may be a while before I post here again. I just received the following letter in the mail. It may take me some time to consider my options. It is up to you to decide if the funds the company spent to pay the Attorneys who wrote this letter was a wise use of your money.
Let me state for the record that I have never knowingly violated any laws. The letter is very vague about which documents that I posted violated confidentiality agreements, so I can make no comments on that aspect. It also alleges that I may have wrongfully disclosed trade secrets or other propretary information. I have no idea what trade secrets I revealed. I certainly didn't tell anyone how the company does its screenings (not that I have any detailed knowledge of such matters. And even if I did, I would not post such knowledge here or anywhere else.)
I firmly believe that every stockholder has the right to know what is being done with their company. After all, it is our money. You can determine for yourself how open the company is to sharing information with its investors.
I consider it a priveledge to have met many fine people here. I hope this is not a permanant goodbye.
What follows is a letter from PRLN's attorney. I deleted most of the information in the company's letterhead because the print was too small for my scanner. It does not materially affect the letter's meaning. I also deleted my address. I realize that if someone wants to find me badly enough, they can do so. But I just feel a little weird putting my address on the internet.
Goodbye (at least for now)
Robin
rsm7@cornell.edu
BROWN, PINNISI & MICHAELS, P.C.
Michael F. Brown
MICNAEL D. PINNISI
(607) 256-2000
FACSIMILE: (607)256-3628
E-MAIL: bbm@lightlink.com
WEB: www.lightlink.com/bbm
500 M & T BANK BUILDING
118 NORTH TIOGA STREET
Ithaca, New York 14850
September 22, 1997
Mr. Robin Messing BY CERTIFIED MAIL
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Re: Paracelsian, Inc. V. John G. Babish
97-CV-804 (RSP)
Dear Mr. Messing:
This firm represents Paracelsian, Inc. ("Paracelsian") in the above-referenced litigation and other legal matters. Please refer this letter to your attorney for review and response.
It has come to our attention that you have published numerous statements regarding Paracelsian and/or its employees by various means including postings on the Internet. These publicatioris have included without limitation excerpts of pleadings and affidavits that have
been filed with the Court, assertions regarding factual matters relevant to Paracelsian, and your personal opinions regarding Paracelsian and certain of its Board members and officers.
This letter is to advise you that your publications may have given rise to actionable rights against you by Paracelsian, its Board members and officers. Grounds for such action might include improper compromise of Paracelsian's intellectual property and defamation of the corporation and its Board members and officers.
Please be advised that neither the corporation nor any of the individuals associated therewith waives or has waived any rights they may have against you as a result of your prior publications. This letter is provided solely to mitigate damage by requesting that you cease and desist from future conduct which Paracelsian believes would be wrongful.
In this regard, to the extent you are not already aware of this fact, please note that certain information produced in the above-referenced litigation is protected by a confidentiality agreement that has been executed by the parties and ordered by a federal District Court Judge. As a result, your publication of confidential company information may constitute a violation of that order, depending upon the circumstances of your acquisition and dissemination of the information. Further, your publications may wrongfully disclose trade secrets or other proprietary information, and thus render you liable for misappropriation of and damage to such intellectual property.
Please note further that certain of your publications, in Paracelsian's opinion, have been defamatory. As your attorney should confirm, publication of untrue accusations of criminality or professional incompetence constitute libel per se. This class of libel permits a defamed person to recover
Mr. Robin Messing
September 21, 1997
Page 2
damages without having to prove the extent of injury caused by such statements, because the nature of the libel is considered so clearly defamatory that injury is presumed by the law. Similarly, a corporation may maintain an action for libel where defamation relates to its business management such that the confidence of the public, such as customers and investors, is adversely affected. You should be aware that repetition of the conduct complained of in this letter, especially after your receipt of this express notice, can increase any civil liability you might otherwise have.
Paracelsian respects your rights as a shareholder and a citizen, and does not wish to infringe upon those rights. To the contrary, the company welcomes your input as a shareholder through proper company
channels. However, to the extent that you intend any future publications that would be outside the bounds protected by law, the company requests and expects that you refrain from such conduct, and reserves the right to respond to any such conduct to the extent permitted by law.
Very truly yours,
Michael D. Pinnisi
cc: John Moss Hinchcliff, Esq.
MDP:jrm |
