On February 28, Chicago-based Reflection Window and Wall (RWW) filed a motion to dismiss a lawsuit for patent infringement filed by Talon Wall Holdings, Entekk Group and Chicago Heights Glass Inc. The Motion to Dismiss was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois by the law firm Perkins Coie LLC.
Defendants RWW, Joel J. Phelps, Pepper Construction Co, Provident Group UIC Surgery Center, Lendlease Construction Inc., 1400 Land Holdings LLC and others jointly moved to dismiss the patent infringement case based on the plaintiffs’ failure to identify any specific and plausible claims of infringement, according to court documents.
Court documents state the patented exterior aluminum and glass wall construction system for commercial buildings, known as Talon Wall®, has been incorporated in Phelps and RWW’s building façade system “Uwall” or “U-8000.” The lawsuit further alleges the defendants knowingly violated the Talon Wall patents.
According to the defendants’ filed motion, the lawsuit was filed by the plaintiffs with the intention of causing harm to RWW’s standing in the industry.
“Plaintiffs declined to identify specific patent claims or allege facts supporting infringement. In fact, they cannot plausibly allege infringement, and they know it,” a court document filed by the defendants in support of their motion reads. “But Plaintiffs sued anyway so that they could wield the lawsuit as a cudgel in the industry, casting meritless aspersions on Talon Wall’s competitor RWW, for example, through a direct email campaign they launched that is already causing harm.”
“RWW emphatically denies that its U8000 UWALL system infringes any Entekk patent claims and will vigorously defend against this unfounded lawsuit,” says Rodrigo d’Escoto, RWW founder and president. “As a developer of building facade systems for over 20 years and a company that makes considerable investments toward product development, the U8000 UWALL will be seen as a disruptive innovation in the industry with a design that can offer significant advantages over conventional curtainwall systems … RWW is confident that it will prevail in this lawsuit and that facts will come to light which will establish how the UWALL system is different and better than competing curtainwall offerings. We look forward to having our day in court and presenting a full and complete account of the facts.”
A motion hearing was set for March 8. A response to RWW’s motion to dismiss is due by March 25.
At press time, representatives for the plaintiffs had not responded to USGNN™’s request for comment.
This article is from USGNN™, the daily e-newsletter that covers the latest glass industry news. Click HERE to sign up—there is no charge. Interested in a deeper dive? Free subscriptions to USGlass magazine in print or digital format are available. Subscribe at no charge Sign up today.
Pingback: Chicago glazing patent infringement litigation names some major contractors, project owners | Chicago Construction News
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Copyright © 2022 USGlass Magazine - Key Media & Research. 20 PGA Drive, Suite 201, Stafford, VA 22554 540/720-5584 (P) | 540/720-5687 (F) | info@usglassmag.com
Reproduction of content on this website in any form without expressed written consent of the publisher is strictly prohibited. Publisher accepts no liablity for errors in textual or graphic content and accepts no responsibility for claims made by any advertising placed on this website or its affiliated sites. Opinions and/or comments shared on this website by its visitors are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of this company or its employees nor does their presence constitute an endorsement. All rights reserved. Read our Privacy Policy.