A federal judge, fed up with two attorneys unable to agree upon the simplest of logistical decisions, ordered them to settle their latest impasse with a round of Rock Paper Scissors (CNN has the ruling).
The issue at hand is the venue at which a deposition will be held, and the winner gets to choose. My favorite part is that the ruling specifies that this battle of wills is to take place:
…at a neutral site agreeable to both parties. If counsel cannot agree on a neutral site, they shall meet on the front steps of the Sam M. Gibbons U.S. Courthouse, 801 North Florida Ave., Tampa, Florida 33602.
In reading about this, I discovered that Rock Paper Scissors enjoys a great deal more interest and creative offshoots than I ever realized. There is a world championship, a strategy guide, political satire, cartoons and game variants involving up to 25 different possible throws. I was most amused by Rock Paper Scissors Spock Lizard.
Update – 7/4/2006: The epic showdown did not take place. Instead the attorneys, successfully chastened by Judge Presnell’s “alternative dispute resolution,” settled the matter beforehand. The article goes on to mention previous methods that Judge Presnell has used to “spur cooperation.” My favorite is the practical embodiment of Rawls’ Original Position. In a divorce proceeding, Presnell had one party make two lists, dividing the property any way hu saw fit, with the understanding that the other spouse would get to pick the list hu wanted.