East Texas Jury Rejects Claims of Patent Infringement, Trade Secret Theft and Fraud

SHERMAN, Texas, Oct. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- An East Texas jury has handed a Dallas pharmaceutical technology company a significant defense victory following a "bet the company" trial in which a rival company sought more than $350 million in damages for alleged patent infringement, trade secret theft, and fraud. A claim for willful infringement and punitive damages pushed the amount claimed to nearly $1 billion.

Jurors in U.S. District Judge Amos Mazzant's court heard three weeks of testimony surrounding the technology developed by Dallas-based AlixaRx and the claims against it by competitor Tech Pharmacy Services, which in addition to damages also sought an injunction seeking to stop future sales of AlixaRx services.

In a September verdict, jurors rejected all but one alleged claim for breach of a single contract out of five between the parties.

"This jury's verdict is a win for innovation," said Tom Melsheimer, managing partner of Winston & Strawn's Dallas office and lead trial attorney for AlixaRx. "AlixaRx designed its products with its own ingenuity, and the jurors in this case rightly saw through the plaintiff's efforts to win at the courthouse what it could not win in the marketplace."

The total recovery on the single claim on which the plaintiff prevailed ($17 million) was less than the plaintiff spent in attorney's fees and expenses to pursue the case, added Melsheimer. 

The case is Tech Pharmacy Services LLC v AlixaRx LLC et al. Case 4:15-cv-00766 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. In addition to Melsheimer, the defense team included Brett Johnson, Michael Bittner, Rex Mann, Grant Schmidt, Danielle Williams, and Samantha Lerner of Winston & Strawn LLP; and local counsel Wesley Hill and Andrea Fair from Ward, Smith & Hill.

Dallas-based AlixaRx employs more than 500 people and is a developer and manufacturer of cutting-edge automation technology for machines that are able to dispense prescription medication in long-term care facilities. The company's innovative pharmacy technology is designed to improve patient outcomes, reduce costs and increase efficiency.

About Winston & Strawn

Winston & Strawn LLP is an international law firm with 16 offices located throughout North America, Asia, and Europe. More information about the firm is available at www.winston.com.

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SOURCE Winston & Strawn