Power Integrations has announced that all four patents asserted by the company in its patent-infringement lawsuit against Fairchild Semiconductor have been found enforceable by the court. Power Integrations was found to have acted properly in the process of applying for and obtaining its patents from the patent office and, as a result, the court rejected Fairchild's claims of inequitable conduct and ruled the patents enforceable.
In October 2006, a jury found that Fairchild willfully infringed each of the four patents and awarded Power Integrations damages of approximately $34 million. In September 2007, a separate jury upheld the validity of each of the four patents.
This latest decision clears the way for resolution of the remaining issues to be decided in the case. These include Power Integrations' request for a permanent injunction against the continued manufacture, importation and sale of the infringing Fairchild parts, and the company's request for enhanced damages based on the finding of willful infringement.
"All four patents have been found valid, enforceable and willfully infringed by Fairchild, and we now look forward to the resolution of the remaining post-trial motions," says Balu Balakrishnan, president and CEO of Power Integrations.