Power Integrations Files Lawsuit Against Fairchild and System General

Jun 11, 2008 3:06 PM

Power Integrations has filed a new patent-infringement lawsuit against Fairchild Semiconductor and its subsidiary System General Corporation (SG). Filed in Delaware, the lawsuit alleges infringement of three U.S. patents, including two patents previously found by Delaware juries to be valid and infringed by certain Fairchild products.

On a related note, Power Integrations and SG agreed to dismiss without prejudice an earlier lawsuit brought by Power Integrations against SG in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. The move follows Power Integrations' successful action against SG at the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), in which the ITC confirmed that the asserted Power Integrations patents were valid, enforceable and infringed.

Following that decision, the ITC issued an exclusion order prohibiting the importation of infringing SG chips and certain downstream products incorporating the infringing chips. The ITC's exclusion order remains in effect, and is being enforced by the U.S. Customs Service.

An earlier Delaware lawsuit brought by Power Integrations against Fairchild remains pending. In that suit, juries found four Power Integrations patents to be valid and infringed by Fairchild. Power Integrations has made post-trial motions requesting an injunction against the infringing Fairchild products and enhancement of the jury's $34 million damage award based on the finding of willful infringement.

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