Pass &Seymour/Legrand, Syracuse, NY, achieved a legal victory when a U.S. International Trade Commission judge ruled that several Chinese and U.S. companies had violated patents held by P&S in the manufacture of ground fault circuit interrupters (GFCI).
 
The ruling will be reviewed by the entire International Trade Commission with a final decision expected by Dec. 24, 2008.
 
The original complaints, filed in August and December of 2007, alleged that safety features built into the GFCIs in question infringed upon six patents held by P&S. Fifteen companies in the U.S. and China were included in the complaints. Six U.S. companies settled with Pass &Seymour before the ruling.
 
The entire area of property rights management is probably the biggest thing any company is dealing with in the global economy today,”said John Selldorff, CEO of Legrand’s North American division, in a previous interview with MDM. “If we’re going to justify the investment we have in research and development, then we have to be able to defend our work.”
 
P&S has a related suit pending in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York, seeking additional damages. There, P&S is also pursuing infringement claims against Hubbell Inc. of Orange, CT, for infringing a number of patents in issue in the ITC ruling as well as other patents.