In February 2008, the parties settled their product disparagement suit before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit had a chance to issue a decision. In November 2007, WLF filed a brief urging the appeals court to rein in use of California’s anti-SLAPP statute, a device often used by attorneys to prevent litigants from obtaining a fair and prompt hearing on their legal claims. WLF argued that the interests of justice are not served when defendants are permitted to disrupt the normal litigation process by filing an anti-SLAPP motion. WLF argued that other procedures provide a more appropriate means of winning dismissal of frivolous litigation. “SLAPP suit” is a pejorative applied by activists to lawsuits filed by business interests in order to silence opponents. In response to these alleged abuses, a number of States (including California) adopted anti-SLAPP statutes, which allow defendants in alleged SLAPP suits to win expedited dismissal and an award of attorney fees.