Court Refuses Legal Brief Filed on CD-Rom

In a cutting-edge decision, a Washington-based federal appeals court refused to accept what apparently was the first appeal filed with any federal court on a CD-ROM. While praising the technological wonders of the cyber-brief, the court said the appeal raised questions of fairness. The problem? Lawyers for the other side in the case didn’t have computers that could read the CD-ROM. The CD-ROM brief was put together by Francis Gindhart, a Washington patent lawyer for the firm of Fish & Richardson. It was filed on behalf of Yuyiko Ltd., a company owned by a New York dentist who has accused dental laboratories of violating his patent on a process for making porcelain dental veneer. The company also filed a traditional paper appeal.