Ricoh Celebrates Hard-Fought Win Against Patent Troll
On June 30th, Ricoh USA announced that it had recently secured “a complete defense victory” following over five years of patent litigation with a non-practicing patent holder – other wise known as patent troll – called Midwest Athletics and Sports Alliance (MASA).
Ricoh said the “contentious, hard-fought litigation” involved three cases across two district courts, an unsuccessful appeal by MASA, an award of attorneys’ fees to Ricoh, an “exceptional case” finding in favor of Ricoh, and ultimately a payment to Ricoh.
Background
In January 2018, MASA filed a first lawsuit against Ricoh in the District of Nebraska. In its lawsuit, MASA alleged that Ricoh infringed on 19 of its patents related to various aspects of printer and copier technology. Its allegations targeted a wide range of Ricoh products, including both Ricoh office and production printers, as well as Ricoh production print software.
In early 2019, Ricoh was successful in having the case transferred to the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. After engaging in substantial discovery, Ricoh moved for summary judgment on the 14 asserted claims that remained in the case, and Ricoh prevailed on all claims. MASA filed an appeal with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. After full briefing and oral argument in November 2022, the appeals court affirmed the summary judgment order.
Ricoh then filed motions in the district court seeking attorneys’ fees. On April 18th, the trial court found that this was an “exceptional case” that justified an award of a party’s attorneys’ fees. Shortly after the Court’s Order, MASA agreed to dismiss its last remaining case against Ricoh, and the parties entered into an agreement by which MASA paid Ricoh to resolve any remaining issues.
Ricoh said it respects the intellectual property of other companies, and that it will vigorously defend itself against improper claims of infringement.
About MASA
MASA , which is based in Omaha, Nebraska, says it provides services, funding, and sports equipment to youth sports organizations across the U.S. It acquired various patents from Eastman Kodak related to printing, and has also sued Xerox for alleged patent infringement, a case that is still ongoing.
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