Order Denying Defendants' Joint Motion for Interlocutory Certification of the Court's July 19, 2013 Orders under D.C. Code § 11-721. District of Columbia Superior Court judge Weisberg on 12 September 2013 denied yet another motion by the defendants, National Review and Competitive Enterprise Institute, that would have created a procedural delay in climate scientist Michael Mann's defamation suit. Graphic: Superior Court of District Columbia

13 September 2013 (Climate Science Watch) – Moving forward to the discovery stage of Michael Mann’s defamation lawsuit against the National Review and the Competitive Enterprise Institute was expedited when District of Columbia Superior Court judge Weisberg on September 12 denied yet another motion by the defendants that would have created a procedural delay. If the defendants’ are hoping that having a new judge on the case will bring a very different viewpoint, his first procedural ruling doesn’t support it. Text of the judge’s ruling: Order Denying Defendants’ Joint Motion for Interlocutory Certification of the Court’s July 19, 2013 Orders under D.C. Code § 11-721 Excerpt:

Although this case undoubtedly involves complex and important issues at the intersection of the First Amendment and the common law of defamation as applied to public figures, there is not “a substantial ground for a difference of opinion” on the controlling questions of law. The [Court’s July 19, 2013, order denying defendants’ motion to dismiss] represents an application of relatively settled law to the facts as articulated in the complaint, and a conclusion that plaintiff has alleged enough to move his case forward to the discovery stage. [more]

DC judge denies another effort to derail Michael Mann’s defamation lawsuit