🚀 go-pugleaf

The Wall Street Journal (4/24/91):

   "Ashton-Tate  won  an interim court   victory  in  its copyright lawsuit
   against a rival software company when a judge reversed himself." [A1]

   ...

   "In an unusual legal turnaround,  a federal judge reversed  his December
   decision denying Ashton-Tate Co.  copyright protection on its prime data
   base software product.   The original order...  clear[ed]  the  way  for
   rivals to clone the popular dBASE, which the company says represents 80%
   of its revenues.  The [new] decision...  [now]  allows  that  suit to go
   forward.   Ultimately, the  judge may  still  find  the copyright to  be
   invalid...  In December, Ashton-Tate filed a motion  for reconsideration
   of the order by U.S. District Judge Terry J.  Hatter, Jr.--and the judge
   then denied the motion.  But last week, the judge suddenly rescinded his
   ruling... [and] decreed that  he wasn't invalidation the copyright after
   all... [Ashton-Tate's chief executive officer William]  Lyons said he is
   hoping  to  settle the  case  by negotiating   an 'appropriate  economic
   solution' with Fox  [Software  Inc.]  and   other   rivals    over their
   copyright differences...   The case is one of  a number of pending suits
   that are likely to determine  the rules in  the  murky realm of software
   copyright law.  The Ashton-Tate case is being closely  watched  by other
   copyright plaintiffs in  the field,  including  Apple Computer, Inc.,...
   and Lotus Development Corp." [B1]

--
Adam R. Grossman
arg@bitstream.com