Court
Grants ACE DuraFlo Attorney Fees in ''Exceptional
Case'' Patent Dispute
IRVINE, Calif., July 09, 2007 (BUSINESS WIRE)--In
the matter involving ACE DuraFlo Systems,
LLC (ACE) and 8 defendants including: Bill
Howe Plumbing, Inc of San Diego, Nu Flow
America Inc, American Pipe Lining Inc (APL),
Bill Howe Sr., Bill Howe Jr. and Steve
Howe, the United States District Court,
Central District California, on June 19,
2007 granted ACE’s Motion
for attorney fees. Case No SA CV 05-01039
DDP (Ctx).
The legal standard in patent matters (35
U.S.C.§ 285) sets that a court is permitted
to award attorney fees to the prevailing
party in “exceptional cases”.
Exceptional cases for example include “those
involving fraud, calculated recklessness,
bad faith and conduct short of fraud but
in excess of negligence.” The court
found that the APL’s conduct in this
case placed them squarely within the range
of cases in which courts grant attorney fees.
In April, the U.S. District Court for the
Central District of California denied APL’s
request that the Court reconsider its January
29, 2007 ruling in favor of ACE, for summary
judgment in which it found that ACE had not
infringed, induced others to infringe or
contributed to the infringement of United
States Patent No. 5,707,702 (the “702
patent”).
The ’702 patent generally involves
a method for manufacturing an epoxy pipelining
composition. The ‘702 patent, owned
by the US, is licensed to APL and sublicensed
to Nu Flow America, Inc. ACE had originally
sought a declaration of non-infringement
as part of an ongoing dispute with APL, Nu
Flow America, Inc, Nu Flow 2000, Bill Howe
Plumbing Inc., Steve Howe and others. In
the Court’s original findings, the
court found that APL had not presented any
evidence from which a reasonable fact-finder
could find that ACE infringed the ‘702
patent. APL failed to provide any evidence
of infringement.
About ACE DuraFlo.
Headquartered in Irvine, California, ACE
DuraFlo's, patented "in-place" pipe
restoration technology, restores failing
copper and encrusted galvanized piping systems,
generally without the extensive demolition
that accompanies a traditional plumbing repipe.
The process involves the application of an
epoxy barrier coating to the inside of a
pipe, resulting in a restored epoxy lined
plumbing system called ePIPE(tm). ACE DuraFlo's
ePIPE offers a complete solution for pinhole
leaks, corrosion control and as an added
benefit stops the leaching of metals from
pipes such as copper and lead from entering
the water supply. ACE provides services in
the US, Canada and Europe.
For more information on ePIPE, pipe restoration
contact ACE DuraFlo Systems, (800) 977-5325
or visit them at www.fixmyleaks.com
Contacts
LF |PR
8935 Research Suite 200
Irvine, CA 92618
zaynabb@lucidfusion.com
949-502-7750 x.202
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