From The Law Offices Of Henry Mark Holzer
September 29, l998
Marcia B. Paul, Esq.
Kay Collyer & Boose, LLP
One Dag Hammarskjold Plaza
New York NY 10017-2299
MS. PAUL:
Barbara Branden and Robert Hessen, both of whom I represent, have provided me with a copy of your September 25, l998, letter to them. I am responding to it promptly both as a matter of professional courtesy and in order that there be no doubt whatsoever of where my clients stand on the matters raised in that letter.
l. There is much in your letter with which my clients disagree, but they will not deign to rebut it. Accordingly, their silence should not be construed as agreement with anything you have said - particularly regarding the second paragraph on page two of your letter: you may "conclude" whatever you wish.
2. Neither Sylvan Leonard Peikoff -- (individually, or as heir to the Estate of Ayn Rand, or as Executor of that Estate, or as Rand's (second) intellectual heir -- nor the Estate itself, nor The Ayn Rand Institute, have any claim, de facto, de jure, or on any other basis, to any of the Branden or Hessen items being auctioned. To the extent that your letter states or implies otherwise, that notion is categorically rejected. Indeed, the evidence of Branden's and Hessen's ownership is overwhelming and readily demonstrable.
3. Unlike in the past, neither Ms. Branden nor Dr. Hessen will submit to your clients' spurious, bullying, assertions as to what rights he purports to possess. Each of my clients now recognizes that their cooperation with Peikoff in the past has only emboldened him, and they are determined this time not to cave in to his threats.
4. This means that if Peikoff sues -- or otherwise interferes with my clients' right to sell property which is lawfully and morally theirs - Peikoff, the Rand Estate, and the Institute will themselves be sued by my clients for interference with their contractual relations and other torts -- and because any action by Peikoff and his associates would be malicious and frivolous, we shall seek both punitive damages and sanctions against them and against any counsel who participate in the making of spurious claims. If litigation comes, at long last it will be payback time, and an opportunity for Ms. Branden and Dr. Hessen to expose Peikoff's real motives -- which are rooted in personal animosities (some very personal, and extremely embarrassing) which go back decades. (In the bargain, we will also ascertain whether your clients have a monopoly on Rand's ideas.)
5. In anticipation of litigation, a defense fund is being organized on behalf of Ms. Branden and Dr. Hessen so that they will have the resources not only to defend against any Peikoff claims, but also to prosecute their claims against him and his associates. I expect that the Internet will soon be ablaze with the assertions and threats made in your letter on behalf of Peikoff and his associates.
6. As to your quaint notion that my clients somehow have the burden of proving to Peikoff that they own the material being auctioned, rather than Peikoff proving non-ownership, suffice it to say that you will receive no information or other assistance from us. If Peikoff, and your firm, believe that my clients' non-ownership can be proved, you know how, and where, to try.
7. Last, but not least, regarding your client's purported concern about dispersal of the material, I have three points:
You may know that recently Peikoff was quoted in the LOS ANGELES TIMES as having said that when, in accordance with his benefactor's wishes, he sent the Fountainhead manuscript to the Library of Congress, he "stole the first and last pages." If Peikoff was quoted accurately and his statement is true, somehow I doubt that Rand would have approved of her intellectual heir stealing from the Library of Congress.
If Peikoff and/or the Institute believes that much of the material to be auctioned should be available to scholars (a sentiment with which my clients happen to agree), I suggest that as a good Objectivist/Capitalist he go into the market, compete, and try to purchase that material (or, before the auction, somehow make arrangements to access it). Rand surely would have approved of Peikoff competing in the marketplace.
Third, related to this last point, I cannot help noting that Peikoff's concern about dispersal rings hollow in view of his apparently having conducted an auction at which he, himself, sold a Rand manuscript.
Please do not communicate with my clients in the future. All correspondence, via regular mail, e-mail, or fax, can be addressed to me here in Santa Fe.
Yours truly,
/s/HENRY MARK HOLZER
http://www.henrymarkholzer.com