AutoZone Asks For Delay In SCO LawsuitAutoZone Asks For Delay In SCO Lawsuit

AutoZone filed a motion asking a court to delay action in SCO's lawsuit against AutoZone, pending resolution of SCO's lawsuits against IBM, Red Hat and Novell.

AutoZone, a user of both Linux and SCO's Unix products, says that the outcome of the lawsuit against it will hinge on the other lawsuits, according to papers filed Friday in the U.S. District Court in Nevada.

"The resolution of each of these prior filed actions will significantly clarify, if not resolve, SCO's claims against AutoZone," AutoZone's attorneys said in court papers. "Staying SCO's claims will thereby avoid duplicative litigation and save the parties and the court significant time and expense that may ultimately prove to be unnecessary."

AutoZone noted that the lawsuit between Red Hat and SCO has already been stayed on similar grounds. Because AutoZone uses Red Hat Linux, the case against AutoZone ought to be stayed until the Red Hat lawsuit is resolved, AutoZone said.

SCO sued AutoZone and DaimlerChrysler, another Linux user, in March, charging they abused SCO's Unix intellectual property

AutoZone also said if the court is unwilling to postpone litigation, the court should force SCO to be more specific about the charges against AutoZone.

"SCO's Complaint broadly alleges that AutoZone's distribution and copying of Linux infringes SCO's alleged rights in Unix; however, it is impossible to tell from the face of the complaint how AutoZone's actions infringe any rights in Unix or what portions of Linux or Unix are at issue. Without a more definite statement of the factual basis for SCO's claims, AutoZone cannot legitimately evaluate or answer the claims," the court papers read.

The complete text of AutoZone's papers is available on Groklaw.