LX Hausys won the second trial in a patent invalidation lawsuit related to insulation materials. LX Hausys said it viewed the ruling as legal recognition of the legitimacy of its original technology that first developed and mass-produced high-performance PF (phenolic foam) insulation in Korea. Myeongil Foam, the opposing party in this lawsuit, said it will appeal to the Supreme Court to seek another ruling on the patent's invalidation.
On the 12th, according to LX Hausys, the Intellectual Property High Court recently ruled in the second trial that LX Hausys' patent is valid.
Earlier, in Mar. 2022, LX Hausys filed a patent infringement injunction lawsuit against the latecomer Myeongil Foam based on its phenolic foam insulation manufacturing technology that enhanced eco-friendliness while improving insulation performance. In Jun. 2022, Myeongil Foam filed a trial for invalidation of the patent registration.
This lawsuit concerns the patent invalidation suit filed by Myeongil Foam. The Intellectual Property High Court said LX Hausys' patent meets the description requirements and presents a new technical problem and solution compared with existing insulation technologies, and judged that validity is recognized on the grounds that it simultaneously achieved improved thermal conductivity and enhanced eco-friendliness through the development of new polymerization technology and parameters.
The patent found valid this time is "phenolic foam, its manufacturing method, and insulation containing it." It is a core original technology through which LX Hausys first mass-produced eco-friendly, high-thermal-insulation PF insulation in Korea. Its feature is that it secures both insulation performance and eco-friendliness.
With this second-trial ruling, LX Hausys can protect the intellectual property related to high-performance PF insulation technology that it has built up by investing massive research and development (R&D) expense over a long period, first mass-producing PF insulation in Korea in 2013 and continuing efforts to improve its performance.
An LX Hausys official said, "With the Intellectual Property High Court ruling recognizing our technological advancement and legitimate patent rights, we will further step up development of insulation products needed by the market and customers and actively protect related intellectual property rights."
After the ruling, Myeongil Foam filed an appeal with the Supreme Court. Before the second-trial ruling, the first-instance patent invalidation case at the Intellectual Property Trial and Appeal Board found, as Myeongil Foam argued, that the patent was invalid.
Patent invalidation and scope-of-rights disputes are first handled by the Intellectual Property Trial and Appeal Board, a quasi-judicial administrative tribunal under the Ministry of Intellectual Property. The second trial is heard by the Intellectual Property High Court, and the third by the Supreme Court.
Myeongil Foam said, "Due to the appeal, we are currently waiting for the Supreme Court's decision," and added, "In the patent infringement lawsuit to determine whether the patent applies to Myeongil Foam's products, even a first-instance decision has not been issued."
Myeongil Foam went on to say, "An invalidation suit, which contests the validity of a patent, and an infringement suit, which determines whether a practicing product infringes, are separate legal procedures, so even if a patent is valid, it cannot be said that the practicing product infringes," adding, "Recently, only the lower court Intellectual Property High Court's finding of patent validity has been emphasized, creating the perception that the entire case is as good as concluded, which raises concerns about market confusion."