SK Nexilis, U.S. Court to Hold Formal Hearing on Trade Secret Infringement Against Solus

Decision to Review Patent Infringement and Trade Secret Claims in Parallel
Lawsuits Expand to Europe and South Korea

SK Nexilis, a copper foil subsidiary of SKC specializing in secondary batteries, announced on September 14 that the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas has decided to formally review its trade secret infringement claims in the patent infringement lawsuit filed against Solus Advanced Materials.

The court accepted the amended complaint submitted by SK Nexilis in August, deciding to address both patent infringement and trade secret infringement in the same case. However, considering that the patent litigation is already underway, the court will separate the proceedings for each issue. SK Nexilis explained that this will allow for a swift ruling on the patent matter, while the trade secret infringement will be reviewed independently.

Regarding the recent acceptance of evidence submitted by Solus Advanced Materials to invalidate the patent, SK Nexilis stated that it is merely a procedural decision and does not acknowledge the possibility of patent invalidation. SK Nexilis emphasized that the source and credibility of the evidence are questionable, and that the patent infringement claims will continue to be addressed in court.

SK Nexilis has also filed a patent infringement injunction lawsuit against Solus Advanced Materials affiliates in Europe. A ruling by the Unified Patent Court of Europe would take effect simultaneously in major countries such as Germany and France, and if SK Nexilis loses, strong measures such as sales bans and product recalls could follow.

In South Korea, four out of eight patent lawsuits filed by Solus Advanced Materials have been ruled invalid. Notably, some of the remaining lawsuits are reportedly based on patents acquired from Japanese companies, sparking controversy.

A representative from SK Nexilis stated, "Acts of infringing on others' rights must be prevented, and this lawsuit is also significant for maintaining our technological edge against Chinese companies. If Solus Advanced Materials acknowledges the intellectual property infringement and cooperates, there is also the possibility of reaching a settlement."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.