Opinion ID: 219469
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Analytic Dissection

Text: Nelcela argues that the district court erred in its Phase I summary judgment by failing to consider the question of analytic dissection prior to the Phase I trial. Although analytic dissection is relevant to a determination of ownership, see Brown Bag Software v. Symantec Corp., 960 F.2d 1465, 1476 (9th Cir. 1992), none of the parties moved the district court to engage in this analysis prior to the Phase I trial. The district court’s decision to bifurcate the proceedings, in reliance on the parties’ expressed positions and theories, was not an abuse of discretion. See Danjaq LLC v. Sony Corp., 263 F.3d 942, 961 (9th Cir. 2001). Moreover, any error in the merits of the district court’s analytic dissection was mooted by the settlement of the copyright claims between Lexcel and Nelcela. See Gator.com Corp. v. L.L. Bean, Inc., 398 F.3d 1125, 1132 (9th Cir. 2005).