Judges chilly to Facebook case

SAN FRANCISCO – A federal appeals court appeared reluctant Tuesday to reopen the legal feud over the founding of Facebook.

In an hour of legal arguments in San Francisco, the judges sent strong signals that they are disinclined to reopen a 2008 settlement between Facebook and a pair of Harvard graduates who claimed former classmate Mark Zuckerberg stole their idea for the social networking phenomenon.

Facebook settled with twin brothers Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss for a package of cash and stock worth about $65 million two years ago, but they have sued to upend the deal, claiming they were duped and are entitled to press ahead with their legal fight.

U.S. District Judge James Ware ruled against the Winklevosses, enforcing the settlement. That moved their appeal to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. With the twins sitting in the front row while lawyers sparred, the three-judge panel repeatedly made comments suggesting that the settlement appears to be a binding deal, whether the Winklevosses like it or not.

The story of Facebook’s origins, woven into a Hollywood tale in the movie “The Social Network,” gave way to legal questions of securities law, contracts and the intricacies of mediation.