Court Reduces Power Integrations Damage Award by 82 Percent & Orders New Trial on Willfulness In Patent Lawsuit Against Fairc...
December 15 2008 - 9:09AM
Business Wire
Fairchild Semiconductor (NYSE: FCS) announced that the court
overseeing its patent lawsuit with Power Integrations has reduced a
jury�s award of damages to Power Integrations from approximately
$34 million to approximately $6 million. The court also ordered a
new trial on whether Fairchild willfully infringed Power
Integrations� asserted patents. The rulings were issued Friday in
the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware. While a
permanent injunction was also issued on a limited number of
Fairchild products, the company said it did not expect the
injunction to have a significant impact on its business because it
had voluntarily stopped U.S. sales and importation of those
products in 2007 and now offers replacement products worldwide.
Fairchild said it expects to appeal on several grounds at the
appropriate time. Final judgment in the case is not expected until
after the new trial on willfulness. The court�s recent decisions
come on the heels of recent actions by the U.S. Patent and
Trademark Office and its issuance of final rejections of 12 of 14
claims from two of three unexpired patents involved in the case.
The Patent Office has twice issued preliminary rejections of all
claims asserted against Fairchild from the third patent, which may
further impact the case. The first two patents are being asserted
against Fairchild in another lawsuit filed by Power Integrations
earlier this year. The majority of the claims from these two
patents asserted in the 2008 lawsuit have now received final
rejections from the Patent Office. Fairchild is also suing Power
Integrations on three Fairchild patents. Another patent lawsuit
brought by Power Integrations against System General Corporation,
now a Fairchild subsidiary, was dismissed earlier this year after
the Patent Office issued preliminary rejections of all Power
Integrations patent claims asserted in that case. Special Note on
Forward-Looking Statements Some of the paragraphs above contain
forward-looking statements that are based on management�s
assumptions and expectations and that involve risk and uncertainty.
All statements in this release, other than statements or
characterizations of historical fact, are forward-looking
statements. Forward-looking statements usually, but do not always,
contain forward-looking terminology such as �we believe,� �we
expect,� or �we anticipate,� or refer to management�s expectations
about Fairchild�s future performance. Many factors could cause
actual results to differ materially from those expressed in
forward-looking statements. Important factors that may cause such a
difference for Fairchild Semiconductor in connection with the
company�s continuing litigation with Power Integrations include,
but are not limited to, the outcome of any responses to, or appeals
by, Power Integrations relating to current or future reexamination
proceedings before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office affecting
the Power Integrations patents asserted in current or future
lawsuits, the outcome of any appeals by Power Integrations and/or
Fairchild from the trial court�s rulings and Fairchild�s ability to
prevail in those appeals, and the risks associated with litigation
in general, including the costs and time that must be devoted to
litigation, the uncertainty of litigation generally, the potential
diversion of attention of management and key employees that may
result from being engaged in litigation, and the possibility of
adverse results. Risk factors affecting the company generally,
including those related to intellectual property and litigation,
are discussed in the company�s quarterly and annual reports filed
with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and available at
the Investor Relations section of Fairchild Semiconductor�s web
site at investor.fairchildsemi.com, or the SEC�s web site at
www.sec.gov. About Fairchild Semiconductor: Fairchild Semiconductor
(NYSE: FCS) is a global leader delivering energy-efficient power
analog and power discrete solutions. Fairchild is The Power
Franchise�, providing leading-edge silicon and packaging
technologies, manufacturing strength and system expertise for
consumer, communications, industrial, portable, computing and
automotive systems. An application-driven, solution-based
semiconductor supplier, Fairchild provides online design tools and
design centers worldwide as part of its comprehensive Global Power
ResourceSM. Please contact us on the web at www.fairchildsemi.com.
Fairchild Semiconductor (NASDAQ:FCS)
Historical Stock Chart
From May 2024 to Jun 2024
Fairchild Semiconductor (NASDAQ:FCS)
Historical Stock Chart
From Jun 2023 to Jun 2024