Samples not warranted to ensure injunction compliance.

LuteinKemin Foods v. Pigmentos (S.D. Iowa 2005).

In a battle over Kemin’s patented form of purified lutein a jury that Pigmentos had infringed one of Kemin’s patents. (Lutein is a color additive with no vitamin A activity).

A jury found for Kemin on one patent.  In addition to requesting a permanent injunction, Kemin also asked for the court to order the defendant to provide representative samples of its products to ensure compliance with the injunction.

In considering this motion, the district court found that that it had the power to “fashion an appropriate remedy” to ensure that the injunction would be enforceable.  However, the injunction should not be“a sword for wounding a former infringer who has made a good-faith effort to modify a previously adjudged or admitted infringing device to remain in the marketplace.”

As a result, court refused to order the samples — holding that “Kemin has been able to obtain samples in the past, and despite the affidavit provided by Kemin, the Court is not convinced it will be unable to do so in the future.”

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