The Ninth Circuit Ain’t Fraida No Ghosts

An Uncertain Future for the Hunting of Ghosts: The Conflict between Idea Submission Claims and Preemption in the Ninth Circuit

Sebastien Delisle 

University of New Hampshire School of Law

December 3, 2010

Abstract:      
On December 16, 2010 the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit will sit en banc for a rehearing of oral argument in the matter of Larry Montz v. Pilgrim Films & Television, Inc. There, one of two things will occur: Stare decisis will be honored and the Court’s earlier ruling for the defendant will be reversed; or the 2004 case of Grosso v. Miramax will be reversed, altering the law on preemption for state-law breach-of-implied-contract claims in California.