Latest news with #American-sounding
Yahoo
12-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Motive says court has no basis to grant Omnitracs' request for retrial
Motive is fighting a motion by Omnitracs for a new trial in a copyright infringement case. In seeking a retrial, Omnitracs claimed Motive used prejudiced religious and racial insinuations in court. Motive's response, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California on Thursday, stated that the jury's verdict was supported by 'substantial evidence,' and that competing fleet technology company Omnitracs did not meet legal standards necessary to overturn the verdict or mandate a new trial. After a nearly two-year legal battle between Omnitracs and Motive, a federal jury unanimously found on April 24 that Motive was not guilty of copyright infringement. A week later, Omnitracs filed a motion for a retrial, arguing that Motive 'relied on a host of improper and irrelevant assertions designed to prejudice the jury against Omnitracs' because one of the jurors was 'presumably Muslim' and wore a head covering. 'In lieu of actual non-infringement evidence, Motive relied on a host of improper and irrelevant assertions designed to prejudice the jury against Omnitracs,' stated Omnitracs' motion for a retrial. 'When cross examining Omnitracs' technical expert, for instance, Motive lobbed an accusation that Omnitracs (and its witness) were racially and religiously insensitive for not explaining that Motive's co-founder allegedly used an American-sounding email alias to avoid discrimination from truck drivers against Muslim[s].' 'There may not be a more prejudicial statement to make to a jury in the Northern District of California, particularly when one of the jurors was born and raised in and wore a head scarf every day of trial.' Additionally, Omnitracs claimed that Motive violated court orders regarding the disclosure of Motive's legal investigation. In Thursday's response, Motive stated that its cross-examination of an Omnitracs expert about a Motive employee who used an American-sounding alias rather than the employee's real name 'to better interface with truckers' was supported by the record, 'did not violate any stipulation, and was not prejudicial.' 'Accordingly, such testimony does not even come close to a 'miscarriage of justice' and provides no basis for a new trial,' Motive stated. Motive also disputed Omnitracs' allegation that it violated the court's pretrial order when asking a witness a question that 'revealed text had been redacted' from a letter between Motive and an individual in October 2018. 'This allegation is demonstrably false,' Motive stated. '[The witness'] testimony is consistent with the unredacted portions of the letter. Critically, these redactions … were agreed by the parties. Additionally, Plaintiffs themselves admitted the October 15, 2018 letter into evidence.' 'Thus, not only did Plaintiffs not object, but they also admitted the evidence [that] they now allege prejudiced them,' Motive continued. 'This alone precludes awarding a new trial.' The post Motive says court has no basis to grant Omnitracs' request for retrial appeared first on FreightWaves.
Yahoo
05-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Omnitracs files motion for retrial over Motive copyright case
Omnitracs has filed a motion for a retrial after a federal jury found competitor Motive not guilty of copyright infringement. The fleet tech provider sued Motive in October 2023 alleging it violated several patents related to fleet management systems and technologies. After a nearly two-year legal fight, the jury delivered a unanimous verdict finding Motive not guilty of these charges on April 25. On Thursday, Omnitracs filed a 33-page motion in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California claiming that Motive's conduct during the original trial was 'prejudiced.' 'In lieu of actual non-infringement evidence, Motive relied on a host of improper and irrelevant assertions designed to prejudice the jury against Omnitracs,' the motion obtained by FreightWaves stated. 'When cross examining Omnitracs' technical expert, for instance, Motive lobbed an accusation that Omnitracs (and its witness) were racially and religiously insensitive for not explaining that Motive's co-founder allegedly used an American-sounding email alias to avoid discrimination from truck drivers against Muslim[s].' 'There may not be a more prejudicial statement to make to a jury in the Northern District of California, particularly when one of the jurors was born and raised in and wore a head scarf every day of trial,' the statement continued. 'What's more, Motive's accusations were not supported by the record and were not substantiated by any later witness.' In addition to religious and racial insinuations, Omnitracs alleged that Motive violated court orders regarding the disclosure of their legal investigation. 'Motive followed up these accusations by repeatedly violating this Court's MIL [motion in limine] order prohibiting references to the alleged legal investigation that Motive conducted but withheld from discovery, in addition to numerous other improper arguments,' the motion stated. 'Second, the highly unusual split verdict form — and the language the Court used in explaining the verdict form — severely and unfairly prejudiced Omnitracs by suggesting that the Court believed Omnitracs' liability case was deficient.' Omnitracs contended that these actions prevented a fair trial. 'This behavior, combined with Motive's seizure of the Court's bifurcated verdict form to give the jury a 'everyone-gets-to-go-home' early option, guaranteed that this case would not be decided on the evidence presented,' the motion stated. Presiding U.S. Judge Rita Lin is expected to respond to the proposed order from Omnitracs by Thursday. Motive told FreightWaves in an emailed statement that it stands behind the jury's verdict and statements provided in its initial news release on the matter. The post Omnitracs files motion for retrial over Motive copyright case appeared first on FreightWaves.
Yahoo
30-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
I Just Lost My Job Because I'm An American
The email arrived unexpectedly last week : We will finish what remains of the project contract, but then we are ending doing business with Americans and American business. I know it's not your fault, but your president just started a war. We still love the American people but good luck. And that, as they say, is that. There goes 20% of my cash flow. It's my first time being boycotted — my first time canceled. I'm a voice-over acto r. I provide the intelligent, trustworthy and engaging voice you hear narrating a TV commercial, a medical device explainer or a YouTube mini-documentary. I'm the voice on those annoying requisite training webinars you likely arrow-through quickly. I'm the aural comfort and security that helps relay information or nudges you toward trusting a brand or message. But the trust in 'that American sound' has been shattered. My client — an international organization that interacts with countries on every continent — no longer wants money going to American individuals or industry, and no longer wants an American-sounding voice to be associated with its hope-filled endeavors. This isn't a Ukrainian client. This isn't some retaliatory Chinese, Iranian or North Korean company's move. The company isn't based in the European Union. Instead, it's friendly Canadians, who are justifiably and patriotically uniting against our now-enemy nation led by a mad king. And this is how our former allies are reacting. I can't wait to see the actions from nations that have always hated us. When the email arrived, I wanted to protest the decision — to upload proof of my entire-adult-life voting record or share links to my vast writings on LGBTQ issues and left-leaning initiatives. Look! See! I'm just as pissed off as you are! We're on the same side! I agree with you! But it doesn't matter. Everyone in the United States is guilty by association. The world has lost patience with us, even if we didn't vote for Donald Trump. We are lumped together — whether we actually support the bad guys or we're just lost causes suffering under them — and there will be economic consequences for all of us. Rejection is part of any creative person's life. We're prepared for the 'we're taking a change in direction' speech. New CEOs, creative directors or VPs come in and tinker with existing contractor relationships. Decision-makers are replaced by new blood. It's part of the gig, and I've endured such losses over the years. But this email — this loss — stung. Any freelancer will tell you that when you succeed in finding that elusive client — the one who respects boundaries, appreciates your work without micromanaging or requesting changes, and then (gasp!) always pays you on time — you want to hold onto them for dear life. Things were going so well. Now this precious gift of a dependable income stream vanished, thanks to Trump's ridiculous tariffs and 'let's make Canada the 51st state' trash talk. It's a devastating blow while I'm already worrying about more and more companies using AI to write their scripts, edit their videos and even narrate the damn video, too. Still, when the initial shock and hurt of losing this contract wore off, I had to tip my hat to those Canadians. I get it. I don't blame them. Enough is enough. Someone has to have the balls to take a stand. And I have great respect for my Canadian friends and colleagues. At least my former employer had the integrity to tell me the truth. He could've said my work wasn't meeting their standards, claimed they wanted a new sound, or blamed it on budgetary tweaks. He could've just ghosted me. Instead he wanted me to hear — and thought it was important for me to know — that our fearless leader's words and actions will have consequences. So, I'm being boycotted… by friendly Canadians. I guess I'll go commiserate with the former U.S. government employees who've also been tossed aside with violent, willy-nilly abandon. I have an inkling we're going to be hearing similar accounts from average and not-so-average Americans feeling the pinch in the coming months, as the more forward-looking nations wash their hands of us (and our nonsense) and make harsh retaliatory and defensive moves. The most daunting questions remain. With so many bridges burned — when all of our former allies have turned away from us and stepped forward as new global powers led by reliable and mature leaders — what will happen to the citizens of this country and this American experiment? Blue state or red state, we're all in the same bucket. We're the bad guys to everyone — and anyone on the right side of history doesn't come to save the bad guys. It will be up to us to save ourselves. But can democracy win in the face of so many actively rooting for it to fail? I don't know. But I will keep fighting by using my voice and my writing, because what else can I do? Brush up on my military contractor sound, since that's where we're headed? Or just adopt a British accent and acquire a new mailing address? Right now I'm in mourning — over all of it. Joe Guay is a voiceover actor and writer currently residing in California. His words have been featured in Katie Couric Media and YourTango. A recovering people pleaser aiming to be 'the poor man's David Sedaris,' Joe provides 'Dispatches from the Guay Life' on topics like mental health, growing up gay, nature as church, travel, showbiz and humor on and you can also find him on Substack or at Do you have a compelling personal story you'd like to see published on HuffPost? Find out what we're looking for here and send us a pitch at pitch@ I Am A USAID Worker Who Lost My Job. Here's What Trump And Musk Aren't Telling You About The Cuts. I Made It My Mission To Find The Priest Who Molested My Brother. Here's What Happened When I Finally Did. The Nazis Made A Horrifying Move In 1933. I'm Terrified Trump Is Now Doing The Exact Same Thing.
