Navico Awarded $38 Million In Patent Suit

Electronics manufacturer Navico, the world’s largest manufacturer of marine electronics and parent company to the Lowrance, Simrad and B&G brands, has been awarded a settlement of $38 million last week by a Texas federal jury, which ruled that Garmin Ltd. willfully infringed two of the company’s DownScan Imaging sonar patents.

Navico was awarded $38,755,000 in damages; the district court judge has discretion to increase that amount to account for the jury’s finding that Garmin’s infringement was willful.

The infringement finding concerned two of Navico’s patents relating to marine sonar technology and is consistent with separate rulings by an International Trade Commission (ITC) Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) and by US Customs and Border Protection (CPB) concerning Garmin’s infringement of additional Navico patents.

“Earlier this year, the ALJ recommended a fine of $37 million against Garmin for violating cease-and-desist orders issued by the ITC to stop Garmin’s infringement of two more Navico patents,” said Leif Ottosson, CEO, Navico. “In a separate decision, the CBP likewise found infringement by Garmin, and stated that Garmin would be barred from importing all infringing sonar products. Now, a federal jury in U.S. District Court has confirmed that Garmin is infringing two other Navico patents – with  all eight jurors voting unanimously that Garmin’s infringement was willful.”

At present time, a decision to reverse a June 2017 ruling by the US Federal Circuit Court of Appeals in favor of Garmin is under review.