Friday, April 08, 2011

Sue Where The Assets Are: Reflex Packaging is suing former client Lenovo for patent infringement in US


By Michiel Tjoe-Awie

Reflex Packaging (Reflex) was supplying patented thermoformed cushions to pack Lenovo's computers. In 2008 Lenovo asked Reflex to remove their name and patent number from the packages. Reflex refused to do so, only to discover later that Lenovo continued to use the same patented package which were allegedly produced without there consent.

The Epoch Times' Matthew Robertson editor quoted Forrest Smith as saying: “The commentary from our counsel over in China was (…) frustrating, which was that your odds of suing successfully in China because of this are very low, because Lenovo is one of the ‘great sons of China.’ That was the message that I got back.” Lenovo is a former state-owned company, but still has ties with powerful Communist Part of China people.

The advice given above led to Reflex filing a lawsuit at the California Northern Disctrict Court in March 2010. Lenovo, which acquired the personal computer division of IBM in 2005, has many assets in the U.S since it is the fourth biggest computer manufacturer in the world and sells a lot of computers in the U.S.

Read more here.

Text Michiel Tjoe-Awie

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