February 27, 2004
The claim of Olin Corporation (Norwalk, Connecticut) filed in Tokyo District Court, asking for an injunction and damages against The Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd. (Tokyo, Japan), was dismissed on February 25, 2004.
Olin Corporation had filed a lawsuit against Furukawa Electric in Tokyo District Court on July 26, 2002, claiming that EFTEC-97, a copper-based alloy for electric connectors produced and sold by Furukawa Electric, infringed Olin's Japanese Patent No. JP2,572,042. Furukawa Electric had argued non-infringement, because its copper-based alloy, EFTEC-97, was developed by Furukawa's own technology, to have strength and electricity as high as those of low-beryllium copper alloy, improved stress relaxation resistance, platability, solderability and bend formability. The judgment of February 25, 2004 found non-infringement by Furukawa Electric, dismissed the claim for an injunction and damages, and ordered Olin Corporation to pay the filing fees.
The invalidity of the Olin's patent is still under examination in an invalidation appeal at the Japan Patent Office filed by Furukawa Electric.
Olin Corporation also filed a similar lawsuit in Connecticut in 2002 based on a corresponding U.S. patent, which was earlier dismissed by summary judgment last year. A motion for attorney's fee is now pending.