The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office decided to re-examine Amazon.com's "1-Click" check-out system patent after a New Zealand actor raised "compelling" concerns.

This isn't the first time the patent has landed Amazon in court. A month after its 1-Click patent was granted in Sept. 1999, Amazon sued BarnesandNoble.com for using a similar feature. The companies settled the lawsuit in March 2002.

In an odd twist, the patent's validity is being challenged by Peter Calveley -- among a dozen actors to provide motions for "The Lord of the Ring's" computer-generated elves and orcs.

We're sure Amazon wants to send the lawsuit into the firey chasms whence it came.