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📌 Judge’s Reaction

At the hearing, Judge Augustin-Birch said the court itself reviewed Owoc’s filings and counted 11 fake citations total:

• 6 in Owoc’s motion
• 5 in his reply brief.

That aligns with Monster’s observation and makes clear the court views this as serious misconduct in legal filings.

"It appears to the court that because of the volumes, the citations and some of the language that is used, the court took some time to try to decipher all of this and it appears to the court that AI may have been used in or order for you to prepare both your motion and your reply," she said.

Judge Augustin-Birch then ordered Owoc to explain why he included fake, AI-generated legal citations in his motion to dismiss Monster Energy's lawsuit to enforce a $377 million judgment it obtained over false advertising claims following a 2022 jury trial in California.

Judge Augustin-Birch didn't immediately issue an order, but she did admonish Owoc:

"I just want you to understand that when you represent yourself, you cannot rely on AI and not check to make sure that the cases you are using are correct propositions," she said. "Just because you are not an attorney, that does not mean you do not have to follow the rules."

In his own defense, Owoc told the Judge that he and his wife could not afford an attorney, citing the costs of raising six children. In the motion, Owoc paints himself as financially strapped despite his high-profile history in the energy drink industry:

“I am raising six children and cannot afford an attorney,” Owoc wrote, defending his decision to represent himself against Monster’s expansive claims.

"I know AI is causing courts a nightmare," Owoc said. "But we did not do anything intentional, but we corrected it and did file it this morning downstairs at the court's terminal. I just want to ask for the court's forgiveness and we don't do it again."

In response to Monster’s request for a filing ban, Owoc followed up by telling the Judge "Don't let them play you like they did with everybody else," he told the judge. "They are one of the most vexatious litigants to walk the planet earth."

But Monster Energy’s response was swift and unforgiving, portraying Owoc’s motion as both procedurally defective and substantively baseless.

Monster emphasized that Owoc remains a central figure in what they describe as a deliberate campaign of trademark abuse, corporate mismanagement, and misleading conduct that persisted even after Bang’s bankruptcy filing.

Bankruptcy Fallout and the Shadow of Mismanagement

Owoc’s legal troubles trace back to the spectacular fall of Bang Energy, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2022 under mounting debt and litigation pressure. Owoc was removed as CEO in 2023, but Monster insists that his liability did not vanish with his ouster.

The energy drink giant alleges that Owoc knowingly authorized misleading claims about Bang’s products — including controversial marketing of “Super Creatine” — and steered the company into reckless legal battles that ultimately gutted shareholder value.

Monster’s filing ties Owoc personally to these decisions, arguing he cannot now “hide behind bankruptcy proceedings” or plead poverty as a defense to liability.