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Sumitomo Rubber Industries Wins Patent Infringement Lawsuit Concerning Emergency Tire Puncture Repair Kits

May. 23. 2018

 
　　　　
 

Sumitomo Rubber Industries Wins Patent Infringement Lawsuit Concerning Emergency Tire Puncture Repair Kits

 

May 23, 2018

 

Sumitomo Rubber Industries, Ltd. is pleased to announce that we have won the lawsuit that we filed against the Italian manufacturer TEK Automotive S.r.l. concerning the infringement of our patents on emergency tire puncture repair kit technology.

Sumitomo Rubber Industries had initially filed this patent infringement lawsuit in the District Court of Mannheim, Germany in October of 2010, claiming the unauthorized use of our patented technology in emergency tire puncture repair kits manufactured by TEK Automotive. The German courts ruled in our favor with regard to the infringement of both patents in March 2015 and May 2017, respectively.
The patented technology involved in this lawsuit, for which we have already obtained patents in the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Italy and South Africa, has received worldwide acclaim for its innovativeness.
As we consider our intellectual property to be an invaluable asset to our group, Sumitomo Rubber Industries will continue to actively develop new cutting-edge technologies while working aggressively to ensure the integrity of our intellectual property so that we may utilize it to its fullest.

 
<Overview>
1.Details of Judgments: Defendant Ordered to Cease and Desist All Infringement and to Pay Compensatory Damages to the Plaintiff
2.Lawsuit Timeline
Patent No. : European Patent No. 1 291 158 (German Domestic Patent No. 50207480.9)
Oct. 2010Lawsuit Brought Before the German District Court of Mannheim
Dec. 2013The court ruled in favor of Sumitomo Rubber Industries (recognizing the infringement) and ordered TEK Automotive to cease and desist all infringement and to pay compensatory damages.
Oct. 2015On appeal, the decision of the lower court was upheld by the Higher Regional Court of Karlsruhe.
May 2017On further appeal, the decision of the lower courts was upheld by the German Federal Court of Justice, thus finalizing the judgment.
Patent No. : European Patent No. 1 121 324 (German Domestic Patent No. 59908136.8)
Oct. 2010Lawsuit Brought Before the German District Court of Mannheim
Jun. 2013The court ruled in favor of Sumitomo Rubber Industries (recognizing the infringement) and ordered TEK Automotive to cease and desist all infringement and to pay compensatory damages.
Mar. 2015On appeal, the decision of the lower court was upheld by the Higher Regional Court of Karlsruhe. TEK Automotive declined to appeal, thus finalizing the judgment.



 

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