A motion in a lawsuit against BuzzFeed and its founder, Ben Smith, mocked its targets by using a BuzzFeed-esque writing style against them (emphasis added):
Aleksej Gubarev and his companies XBT Holdings and Webzilla sued BuzzFeed and Smith for defamation following the publication of a “dossier” alleging that he and his companies had engaged in criminal political behavior.
BuzzFeed apparently sought a dismissal of the lawsuit on the grounds of a Florida-based federal court’s lack of jurisdiction. If the motion for dismissal were to be denied, it requested a transfer of the lawsuit to a New York-based federal court.
Gubarev’s motion also mocked the grounds for BuzzFeed’s aforementioned requests for a dismissal or transfer of the lawsuit from Florida to New York:
In a somewhat remarkable Motion to Dismiss, Plaintiffs BuzzFeed, Inc. (“BuzzFeed”) and Ben Smith (“Mr. Smith”) intimate that their ties to Florida are so sparse that, collectively, they can barely find Florida on a map and that, as a result, the present case should be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction or transferred to the Southern District of New York.
In truth, however, this case does not present a “close call” jurisdictionally: Defendants have extensive and continuing ties to Florida; committed an intentional tort in Florida; and caused harm to a Florida corporation. Defendants regularly and routinely send their reporters to Florida; report on Florida-centric stories; host celebrity-laden parties in Florida; livestream events from Florida; work with Florida advertisers; and generally target and solicit an audience in Florida. Indeed, it could be argued that BuzzFeed is as much “at home” in Florida as are sunny beaches and Florida orange juice, particularly since BuzzFeed has created and circulated on its website dozens of articles specifically created for its clients, VisitFlorida.com (the Official Florida Tourism Industry Marketing Corporation) and the Florida Department of Citrus (the official promoters of Florida Orange Juice).
…
The article was circulated in Florida; Defendants have pervasive contacts with Florida; there is every reason for Defendants to have expected that their actions would subject them to jurisdiction in Florida; and there is no hardship to Defendants in being required to defend an action in Florida.
In response to BuzzFeed’s and Smith’s shared claim of a limited connection to Florida as the basis for a dismissal or transfer of the lawsuit, Gubarev’s motion claims the two defendants have deep connections to the Sunshine State: BuzzFeed produces content focusing on Florida, sends its employees to Florida on various projects, and Smith has been to Florida various times in a business capacity on behalf of BuzzFeed.
Gubarev’s motion notes that BuzzFeed claimed to have dedicated “four reporters working near full-time” in its attempt to verify allegations in the dossier. Also noted is Smith’s public statements that he made the made the final decision to publish the dossier at BuzzFeed in his capacity as the site’s chief editor.https://twitchy.com/dougp-3137/2017/03/29/ha-title-of-motion-in-lawsuit-against-buzzfeed-is-amazing/
Legal eagles on Twitter were amused:
H/T Doug P. at Twitchy
Follow Robert Kraychik on Twitter.