Final Season Promotional Image (HBO)
Don’t you just love it when two of your interests overlap? The Venn diagram of Ninth Circuit watchers and folks disappointed by the final season of the HBO hit Game of Thrones got a shout out in a recent decision.
The case was Banks v. Northern Trust Company, which is about the interpretation of the Securities Litigation Uniform Standards Act of 1998. But really the substance of the case is besides the point. Suffice it to say the defendants wanted the court to read a case without looking to a case in the same line that amended the interpretation provided in the original case.
The Ninth Circuit shut that down right quick:
Northern would like us to read Dabit [Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc. v. Dabit] without considering its clarification in Troice [Chadbourne & Parke LLP v. Troice]. But we will not render Troice meaningless the way that Game of Thrones rendered the entire Night King storyline meaningless in its final season.
Though it seems not everyone was thrilled about slipping pop culture into opinions:
The opinion was written by Judge John Owens, because of course it was. This isn’t the first time he’s used pop culture to make a point in an opinion. Hell, he’s even gone to the Game of Thrones well before, but it’s always fun to see a cultural touchstone referenced in a case. And that it throws shade at such a highly anticipated, but ultimately disappointing final season of TV, so much the better.
Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, and host of The Jabot podcast. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter (@Kathryn1).