Craters & Freighters v. Fred Benz

FILED NOT FOR PUBLICATION JAN 11 2012 MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS U .S. C O U R T OF APPE ALS FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT CRATERS & FREIGHTERS, a Colorado No. 10-16004 corporation, D.C. No. 4:09-cv-04531-CW Plaintiff - Appellee, v. MEMORANDUM * FRED BENZ; KATHY BENZ, Defendants - Appellants, and DAISYCHAIN ENTERPRISES, a California corporation, Defendant. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of California Claudia A. Wilken, District Judge, Presiding Submitted December 19, 2011 ** Before: GOODWIN, WALLACE, and McKEOWN, Circuit Judges. * This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent except as provided by 9th Cir. R. 36-3. ** The panel unanimously concludes this case is suitable for decision without oral argument. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2). Fred and Kathy Benz appeal pro se from the district court’s default judgment in this action alleging trademark infringement, copyright infringement, and related claims. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291. We review de novo the issue of whether a party has waived a defense, Owens v. Kaiser Found. Health Plan, Inc., 244 F.3d 708, 713 (9th Cir. 2001), and we affirm. The district court properly concluded that the Benzes waived their defense of insufficient service of process based on their litigation conduct. See Peterson v. Highland Music, Inc., 140 F.3d 1313, 1317-18 (9th Cir. 1998) (defenses, such as lack of personal jurisdiction, may be waived as a result of a party’s litigation conduct, including when the party raises the defense but does not pursue it further until an adverse decision on the merits). The Benzes’ remaining contentions are unavailing. AFFIRMED. 2 10-16004