Sep 4 2007
Albemarle Corporation recently filed suit against Isochem Kautschuk GmbH at the court in Duesseldorf, Germany. The suit alleges that Isochem infringes Albemarle's patent covering a specific production process of the substance DPE (Decabromodiphenyl Ethane) by importing it from a foreign supplier.
Isochem Kautschuk GmbH is a strong supporter of intellectual property rights. Therefore, it is part of our standard vetting process for suppliers to query them extensively about the processes they employ, to make sure that no patent violation occurs. As such, we were able to make sure that our supplier employs production processes that do not violate Albemarle's patent.
It is unclear why Albemarle did not contact Isochem before filing suit, as we believe even a cursory exchange of crucial information regarding the processes used could have saved both companies a lot of time and effort.
There are numerous suppliers and importers of DPE. To our knowledge, none of these companies have been sued. We can only speculate that this suit is part of a new strategy that seeks to increase Albemarle's market share through litigation, as opposed to actually competing based on quality and price.
Isochem remains committed to international intellectual property rights and will prove in court that Albemarle's patents have indeed not been violated. More information about the ongoing legal proceedings will be released as it becomes available.