MBN v. United States, et al.: Status Conference Today

MBN v. United States, et al.: Status Conference Today

                The legal cases brought by parties connected with Voice of America were heard today by Senior Judge Royce Lamberth at the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. Following that lengthy hearing, the Judge held a status conference with counsel for the grantees and the US Government. A status conference is not a hearing. Rather, it is what it sounds like: a chance for the lawyers for each side to state to the Judge their view of the status of the proceedings. (MBN has filed a Motion for a Preliminary Injunction, but no hearing on the motion has yet been scheduled by the Court.)

Prior to the status conference, MBN filed additional papers with the Court. We informed him that despite having a signed Grant Agreement in place, we had still not received our April funding. We told him about the events of this past weekend. We informed him of this hard truth: Without the layoffs, MBN would have been insolvent tomorrow, April 18. All the Grantees have filed lawsuits; to date, none of us has received April funding. The Judge said that he would provide guidance or an order tomorrow. We will let you know what it says.