As Righthaven is desperately trying to avoid paying legal fees to Marc Randazza in the Hoehn case, it appears that the company has caught a very slight and brief reprieve. Judge Philip Pro has given the company a little bit more time, saying that Righthaven doesn't need to pay attorneys fees while the case is on appeal - but it must post a bond to show that it can pay the $34k within 30 days.

The judge then rejected the attempt to have Righthaven declared in contempt, and to allow the US Marshals to seize Righthaven assets. That's pretty understandable, given the appeal. Requiring Righthaven to post bond seems quite reasonable, even though I'm sure Righthaven will try to get out of it.

Judge Pro also made it easier for Righthaven to post bond by saying that it only had to post bond on the $34k, rather than a much larger sum, including additional legal fees for the appeals process. This basically gives Righthaven a very, very brief respite, but isn't going to help. Even the judge makes it clear that Righthaven "does not enjoy a reasonable probability of success on the merits of its appeal."