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(EMAILWIRE.COM, March 29, 2011 ) Buffalo, NY -- Richard Arcara, U.S. District Judge in Buffalo, New York, ruled yesterday that Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg is a legal resident of California, thus cementing a lawsuit filed in New York to be heard by a federal court.
Paul Ceglia, a New York resident, has filed a lawsuit against Zuckerberg's Facebook claiming 84 percent ownership of Facebook due to a contract with Zuckerberg from 2003.
Ceglia wanted the case to be heard in New York State court. U.S. law allows federal courts to hear cases when more that $75,000 is involved, and the two parties parties are from different states.
Ceglia's attorney had claimed that Zuckerberg hadn't properly changed his legal residency from New York, when his resided with his parents while attending Harvard, to California.
Judge Arcara, however, ruled that Zuckerberg is a resident of Palo Alto, California. Arcara said in his decision, "As of 2010, when this lawsuit was filed, Facebook had over 500 million active users and employed over 1,600 people. It is simply incomprehensible that Zuckerberg intends to abandon his life, friends and daily management of his multibillion-dollar company to return to New York and live near his parents."
The judge noted that Zuckerberg has been living in California since 2004, and that he has a valid driver's license issued by California. Additionally, Judge Arcara pointed out that Zuckerberg receives his postal mail, pays his state taxes, and votes in California.
The ruling paves the way for Federal Court to hear the case. Facebook attorneys are pleased. Andrew Noyes, a Facebook spokesman, issued an email statement saying, "We are pleased that the court agreed with us that this case belongs in the federal court. This is a fraudulent lawsuit brought by a scam artist, and we look forward to defending it in federal court."
Ceglia's attorney, Terrence Connors, did not reply to a message asking for a comment.
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