personal

LOPSA + SAGE + USENIX = l@m3

I got the following email from LOPSA (of which I am a member).  I’m at a loss for words and am now unsure as to why I am a member of either organization.  The whole affair seems completely in contradiction to my opinions of all things *nix…

Dear Charles, 

As you may be aware, LOPSA was sued as a third-party defendant by the 
USENIX Association in April 2008, as part of a lawsuit brought by 
Association Headquarters, Inc., against USENIX to recover for services 
AH provided to LOPSA for which USENIX is allegedly responsible.  LOPSA 
secured legal counsel at the time and has been involved in the pre-trial 
phase of this suit as required. 

I am writing to inform you that on October 6, 2008 LOPSA filed 
counterclaims against USENIX.  These counterclaims stem from actions 
taken by USENIX during the failed spin-off of SAGE from USENIX, which 
caused the termination of the spin-off by USENIX and directly damaged 
LOPSA.  We are seeking relief for the damages sustained by LOPSA. 

We did not reach this decision lightly.  We have enjoyed a good working 
partnership with USENIX over the past three years, and we hope it 
continues.  However, by suing LOPSA, USENIX has asked the Court to 
decide which party bears the ultimate responsibility for the failure to 
spin-off SAGE from USENIX.  Therefore, it is entirely appropriate for 
LOPSA to also demand that USENIX account for its actions in aborting the 
spin-off of SAGE from USENIX.   

LOPSA has always been committed to openness and transparency in all our 
affairs.  While the nature of the lawsuit requires us to be somewhat 
less open than we would prefer, I can, however, address a few questions 
that I am sure many of you may have as voting members of LOPSA.   

First, we are NOT diverting your dues or sponsorship contributions into 
this suit.  Our defense of the claims brought by USENIX is being 
partially paid by insurance, and our legal team at Kasowitz, Benson, 
Torres & Friedman LLP has agreed to handle our counterclaims pro bono. 
Prior to securing the involvement of Kasowitz Benson, we faced some 
relatively small expenses as a result of USENIX’s suit, but if we make 
our membership and sponsorship targets for 2008 — and we’re on track — 
our budget should not be impacted. 

Second, LOPSA continues to work with USENIX, and we are confident our 
claims will not jeopardize the future of USENIX in any way.  Indeed, we 
hope that the recently-elected USENIX Board of Directors will work with 
us to resolve the issues raised by this litigation in a manner which 
benefits both our organizations and allows us to continue working 
together to advance our missions. 

Third, LOPSA remains committed to LISA as the premier annual system 
administration conference, and we will continue to promote it.  LOPSA 
will continue its presence in San Diego this November, including our 
booth, our LOPSA After Dark hospitality suite, and our Annual Membership 
Meeting.  We do not believe this suit should affect LISA in any way, and 
we urge all our members to attend as they are able. 

If you have further questions, we have placed a FAQ on our website at 

http://lopsa.org/faq-on-counterclaims 

In addition, feel free to ask us questions.  We may not be able to 
answer some of them due to the litigation, but it never hurts to ask, 
and we’ll do the best we can to answer them.  We also suggest that you 
read LOPSA’s counterclaims against USENIX, which are available at: 

http://lopsa.org/files/Counterclaims.pdf 

Sincerely, 

Trey Harris 
President, the League of Professional System Administrators