Robert N. Rooks, Four Co-Defendants And Their Imposter Corporations Held Liable To Allied Artists International For Over $311,000

Federal Court deems Rooks' wrong-doing "exceptional" and notes that he "knowingly infringed the 'Allied Artists' mark as part of a scheme to defraud investors. . ." End Quote

(1888PressRelease) December 20, 2010 - On December 8, 2010, United States District Judge Gary A. Feess ordered Robert N. Rooks, four co-defendants and their imposter corporations, to pay Allied Artists International $274,825.16 in attorneys' fees, after finding that they infringed the "Allied Artists" trademarks as "part of a scheme to defraud investors into believing that they were investing in [the real Allied Artists]." Judge Feess previously held Rooks in contempt earlier this year, in connection with his having violated a March 1, 2010 injunction prohibiting him from further infringement. Rooks was ordered to pay Allied Artists International nearly $5,000.00 in the contempt proceeding. In addition, Rooks has previously been ordered to pay $30,000.00 in connection with the infringement itself and another $2,000.00 in sanctions. Rooks now owes Allied Artists International in excess of $311,000.00.

In December of 2008, Allied Artists International, the parent of Allied Artists Pictures, Allied Artists Music Group and Allied Artists Associated Entertainment Ventures, filed a fifty million dollar trademark infringement suit against Rooks, two infringing corporations and four co-defendants. The action, case number CV08-08116-GAF(RZx), stemmed from Rooks' having formed California and Nevada entities both named, "Allied Artists Pictures Corporation," and launching counterfeit "Allied Artists" websites. Rooks and his co-defendants were charged with creating the counterfeit websites and infringing on the Allied Artists trademark, in a fraudulent scheme to artificially elevate the stock price of their fledgling International Synergy Holding Company, Ltd, which is publicly traded on the Frankfurt Exchange under trading symbol IBS.F. Allied Artists alleged that the quintet falsely claimed in an August 8, 2008 press release that International Synergy had "acquired Allied Artists Pictures Corporation," in a scheme to defraud investors who believed they were investing in the real Allied Artists. In a case previously brought by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, a Los Angeles federal court found that Rooks disseminated false and misleading information in 1996 that caused a publicly-traded company's stock price to skyrocket from $.13 to $4, or more than 3,000%. A $100,000.00 fine imposed against Rooks in that case remains unpaid.

Rooks unsuccessfully appealed his infringement judgment to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Rooks' co-defendants, Darron Carr, Carlton Jinkens, Jammie Padilla and Mark Nolte each failed to file an appeal and are jointly liable to Allied Artists International for the court's judgment.

The history of Allied Artists is long, varied and legendary. Throughout the years, the Allied Artists brand has been associated with such classic motion pictures as "Papillon," starring Steve McQueen and Dustin Hoffman, "Cabaret," with Liza Minnelli and Joel Grey, "Tickle Me" starring Elvis Presley, and "The Man Who Would be King," starring Sean Connery, Michael Caine and Christopher Plummer, to name but a few.

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