$12.5 Million Infringement Verdict Remitted to $3.5 Million

Following a $12.5 million jury verdict for infringement of plaintiff's water system disinfectant patent, the court granted defendants' alternative motion for remittitur, subject to plaintiff's acceptance of a $3.5 million award, because the verdict was excessive. "Instead of apportioning its royalty claim based on a reasonable estimate of the value of the claimed technology, as is required, Plaintiff based its damages theory on the value to [defendants] of all of the chlorine dioxide it created. This theory inflated the damages Plaintiff was entitled to recover, because it included the chlorine dioxide [defendants] created through the use of a non-infringing and prior art technique. . . . [B]y adjusting the parties’ respective proposals by considering their methodological shortcomings, it is possible to ascertain the 'maximum amount sustainable by the proof.'. . . Balancing these two competing proposals, and considering the trial evidence in light of the apportionment analysis, the Court concludes that a remittitur to $3.5 million is appropriate. "

CH2O, Inc. v. Meras Engineering, Inc., 2-13-cv-08418 (CACD April 10, 2018, Order) (Kronstadt, USDJ)