No more delays: Activision takes fired Infinity Ward founders to court on May 29th
Activision vs. ex-Infinity Ward trial kicks off May 29 as planned.
A Los Angeles judge has denied publisher Activision's request to delay the trial that will see ex-Infinity Ward leads Jason West and Vince Zampella face their former publisher in court. The lawsuit between the creators of the multi-billion dollar Call of Duty franchise and the game's publisher will go ahead on May 29 as planned.
Earlier this week, Activision's recently hired legal representation on the case, former U.S. assistant attorney Beth Wilkinson, requested a 30-day extension from the court. Activision tells Polygon today that its request for continuance was denied.
Jason West and Vince Zampella were fired from the Activision-owned Infinity Ward studio in early 2010 for "breaches of contract and insubordination."
West and Zampella, along with dozens of former Infinity Ward staffers, filed a multi-million dollar lawsuit against Activision in 2010, claiming unpaid bonuses for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. On Monday, Activision paid out $42 million in bonuses to ex-Infinity Ward staffers.
Publisher Activision filed its own countersuit against West and Zampella–later adding rival publisher Electronic Arts to the countersuit–accusing the pair of attempting "steal" the Infinity Ward team "at the expense of Activision and its shareholders and for their own personal financial gain."
Earlier this month, Activision attempted to keep the jury from hearing testimony from a former employee, who alleges that he was asked to "dig up dirt" on West and Zampella by an in-house legal team member. According to a report from Bloomberg, lawyers for West and Zampella claim that Activision was attempting to break through Infinity Ward's internal firewall and secretly looking for reasons to fire the pair.
The trial is expected to run four to six weeks in a Los Angeles Superior Court, bookending this year's E3.
In This Storystream:
Activision goes to war: Lawsuits, countersuits and $1b at stake
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May 25 2012, 8:54p Activision has paid Infinity Ward more than $493 million in bonuses for Call of Duty
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May 24 2012, 5:14p Activision v. West and Zampella case pushed back to June 1st
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May 21 2012, 7:34p Bungie's 'sci-fantasy, action shooter' Destiny headed to Xbox 360 & 720 in fall 2013
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May 16 2012, 6:20p Activision and EA reach settlement in Call of Duty lawsuit
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May 16 2012, 5:38p No more delays: Activision takes fired Infinity Ward founders to court on May 29th
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May 14 2012, 8:27p Activision pays $42m to former Infinity Ward devs, not a settlement
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May 14 2012, 8:26p Activision lawsuit to be lead by Oklahoma City bombing prosecutor
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