An appeals court on Monday declined to schedule another hearing in the case between the Winklevoss twins and Facebook, essentially telling the duo that they just need to let it go.
"At some point, litigation must come to an end. That point has now been reached," the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit said in its decision.
The three-judge panel pointed out that Cameron and Tyler "are not the first parties bested by a competitor who then seek to gain through litigation what they were unable to achieve in the marketplace."
The judges said they might have reconsidered the case had the Winklevosses not already agreed to a $65 million settlement.
"With the help of a team of lawyers and a financial advisor, they made a deal that appears quite favorable in light of recent market activity," the court wrote in its decision. "For whatever reason, they now want to back out. Like the district court, we see no basis for allowing them to do so."
The twins, however, will reportedly take the case to the Supreme Court. According to a press release posted on All Things D, the Winkelvosses lawyers argued that the $65 million deal was fraudulent and should not be upheld.
"Settlements should be based on honest dealing, and courts have wisely refused to enforce a settlement obtained by fraudulent means. The Court's decision shut the courthouse door to a solid claim that Facebook obtained this settlement by committing securities fraud. Our Petition to the Supreme Court will ask the high court to decide whether that door should be reopened," lead appellate attorney Jerome B. Falk, Jr. said in a statement.
The twins, of course, have argued that the $65 million was not fair and that they are actually entitled to more. As many are aware, they claim that Mark Zuckerberg stole the idea for Facebook from them, and they are therefore entitled to a piece of the Facebook pie. In 2008, the two sides agreed to a $65 million deal whereby the twins would get a $20 million chunk of change, plus a stake in the company worth $45 million.
The number of shares issued to the Winkelvii was based on a $15 billion valuation cited when Microsoft invested $240 million in the company back in 2007, putting the per-share value at $35.90. But the twins said Facebook's own expert valuation put the per-stock value at $8.88, unbeknownst to them. "Had [the Winklevii] known of the $8.88 valuation, they would have challenged the $35.90 value on which Facebook's settlement offer was based," according to a filing—and presumably obtained more shares.
As a result, the twins claimed the deal was a fraud. Facebook turned to the courts, and in June 2008, U.S. District Judge James Ware sided with Facebook. The twins again appealed, but recently, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals again agreed with Facebook. The twins appealed again, arguing that Facebook's valuation scheme is securities fraud. "Rescinding a securities transaction on the ground of fraud is hardly 'backing out,' they argued. The appeals court disagreed.
The Winkelvosses are embroiled in another Facebook-related battle. Earlier this month, a Massachusetts judge ruled that a case filed by software developer Wayne Chang can proceed. Chang claims that he is owed a portion of the $65 million settlement.
Editor's Note: This story was updated at 9:15pm Eastern with info about the Supreme Court appeal.