Scientology challenges Remini to prove that David Miscavige's branch should be in lawsuit

[Leah Remini and Judge Randolph Hammock]

Near the end of today’s hearing in Leah Remini’s lawsuit against Scientology at Los Angeles Superior Court, attorney Robert Mangels stood and told Judge Randolph Hammock that his client, the Religious Technology Center, should be left out of the case.

RTC is the nominally controlling entity of the Scientology movement, and its chairman is David Miscavige, which is why Scientologists regularly refer to him as “C.O.B.,” for chairman of the board.

But in the early 1980s, Scientology purposely restructured itself so that its myriad of alphabet entities — RTC, CSI, ASI, etc. — would be confusing to outsiders.

Ask anyone who was in a powerful position in Scientology, like Mike Rinder, and they’ll tell you that no “Fair Game” campaign against someone like Leah Remini would happen without the approval of Miscavige and RTC.

But Judge Hammock seemed taken aback by Mangel’s argument that Leah’s lawsuit doesn’t specifically connect RTC to the stalking, intimidation, and tortious interference that she’s alleging, and he put it to Leah’s attorney Linda Singer to cite a declaration that made that connection. Singer was unable to.

But the hearing was running over, so Judge Hammock continued it to Friday morning, when they’re already scheduled to hear Leah’s motion for a preliminary injunction (which, the judge says, he’s leaning toward denying), and by then Singer needs to come up with connections between the harassment and RTC or could possibly lose RTC as a defendant.

Otherwise, today’s hearing featured Scientology attorney William Forman bringing up what seemed to be some pretty minor points about which paragraphs Judge Hammock had proposed striking from Leah’s lawsuit as a result of Scientology’s anti-SLAPP motion.

For example, Forman brought up a paragraph that Judge Hammock has already proposed striking from her defamation claim because it was opinion stated about her. Forman wanted it also stricken under other claims as well. But Judge Hammock said just because it wasn’t an example of defamation didn’t mean Leah couldn’t use it as evidence at trial for other parts of her case.

And that’s how it went for hours, Forman bringing up some paragraphs that Judge Hammock agreed he would go over again, and Singer also asking for some things that didn’t seem to move the judge much.

Our takeaway was that Judge Hammock does care very much about this matter — he said he had worked harder at that tentative ruling than anything he had ever done on a motion in his career — and he made numerous observations that suggest he’s well aware of Scientology’s reputation and what’s at stake in this case.

He’s quite adamant, for example, that at this point in the case, when standards of evidence are modest, that there’s little question Scientology has shown “malice” when it comes to its activities regarding Leah Remini. That seems very significant.

We’ll be back Friday to see how much of Judge Hammock’s tentative ruling stands, and if he is going to deny the preliminary injunction. He asked Singer to bring him the most recent example of Scientology harassing Leah in order to see if there really is a pressing need for an injunction.

Wow, a lot of homework for Leah’s team.

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