Seems to me a case could be made that the original cause was the Gates attorneys malfeasance and today's condition is a result of it, or the court consider the damage done within a timeframe rather than extending out to today.

Headlines could be "Company deceived by Gates attorneys forced into non-reporting status." Anyway, if QMC does sue, I would expect Gates to settle because the damage to their reputation from the case proceeding would cause them to lose that elite status which garners them so many trophies.