Million Jury Award For SunTiger

Banner & Witcoff, Ltd., an intellectual property law firm with offices in Chicago, Washington, DC and Boston, announced today that the firm has won a patent infringement lawsuit, including $2.7 M award of damages and a willful infringement verdict, for their client, SunTiger, Inc. against Scientific Research Funding Group. Banner & Witcoff attorneys further stated that SunTiger will be seeking treble damages and attorneys' fees due to the willful infringement verdict.

The trial took place in the Eastern District of Virginia. The case involved patents on polarized sunglass lens technology developed by NASA scientists, more commonly known as blue blocking sunglasses. The case also represents the first time that an infomercial producer has been found willfully liable for active inducement of patent infringement.

The jury's willful infringement verdict in this case sends a message to all companies who copy SunTiger's patented sunglass lens technology, said Charles W. Shifley, the Banner & Witcoff attorney who led the team representing SunTiger. We know there are other companies who are selling infringing products and, because of that, there will be more lawsuits filed.

The product at issue is a revolutionary optical lens technology used in sunglasses. In the late 1970's, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory scientists discovered this lens technology that protects human eyesight by blocking dangerous blue, violet and ultra-violet wavelengths of light. The sunglass lens technology is protected by several domestic and international patents.

SunTiger was chosen to be the only company endorsed by the NASA inventors to market this blue blocking sunglass technology, which originated with the discovery that eagles and other birds of prey possess a natural orange filter that protected and enhanced vision. These same properties were synthetically replicated in the blue blocking lenses.

Since these sunglasses are one of the few that provide significant health benefits to humans, it is understandable that other companies wanted to be able to sell this product, Shifley explained. However, as the Judge stated at the end of the trial, SunTiger's patents 'are valid as a matter of law' and are enforceable. Consequently, SunTiger will continue to vigorously assert its patent rights.

In 1994, Scientific Research Funding Group produced an infomercial to sell Eagle Eyes sunglasses that infringed SunTiger's patents. After test marketing the infomercial, Scientific entered into a distribution agreement with Positive Response Television Corp. to air the infomercial and sell the Eagle Eyes sunglasses.

Positive Response later contracted with Telebrands Corp. to sell the Eagle Eyes sunglasses at retail. In the present case, the Judge held that Scientific Research Funding Group was willfully liable for its own sales of Eagle Eyes Sunglasses as well as for the Eagle Eyes sales by Positive Response and Telebrands. Thus, an infomercial producer was found, for the first time, to be willfully liable for active inducement of patent infringement.

Thus far, National Media Corp., Positive Response Television Corp., Telebrands Corp., BluBlocker Corp. and JS&A Group, Inc. have taken licenses under SunTiger's patents on its polarized, blue blocking, sunglass lens technology. Other licenses are expected.

Highlights Of SunTiger's Blue Blocking Sunglasses.

In the late 1970's, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory scientists invented revolutionary optical lens technology that protected human eyesight by blocking dangerous blue, violet and ultra-violet light. The sunglass lens technology was independently developed by the JPL scientists working on their own. This is protected by several United States and international patents.

The concept of blue blocking lenses originated from the JPL scientists discovery that eagles and other birds of prey possess a natural orange filter that protected and enhanced vision and the same properties were synthetically replicated in these blue blocking lenses.

Also see: discount designer sun glasses.

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