Federal Court Awards MacDermid $27 Million in Punitive Damages in Thermal Litigation

On January 20, 2015, 2014, a federal court in Hartford, Connecticut issued a ruling awarding MacDermid $27 million in punitive damages in its lawsuit brought against Cortron Corporation in 2008. The lawsuit by MacDermid alleged that certain illegal activities had occurred between Cortron and E.I. DuPont de Nemours Company which injured MacDermid and portions of the flexographic printing market.

In late 2014, a jury found that the activities between Cortron and DuPont violated federal and state anti-trust laws and awarded MacDermid millions of dollars in damages. However, the amount of punitive damages was left to be decided by the court. On Tuesday, the court awarded MacDermid $20 million in compensatory damages and $27 million in punitive damages.

The order from the court stated, “It is hard to imagine a clearer case of willful and malicious misuse of another company’s trade secrets. The record establishes, and the jury’s verdict reflects, that management at Cortron deliberately delivered copies of MacDermid’s customer list and technical drawings to DuPont, MacDermid’s rival, and then destroyed the electronic versions of the drawings, knowing full well that Cortron had a duty to keep that information confidential, and intending to harm MacDermid’s business and promote Cortron’s and DuPont’s business. Testimony showed that Cortron officials knew that it was wrong to disclose the secrets to DuPont but did so anyway. Further, these actions unfolded as part of a larger scheme, carried out in concert with DuPont.”

For many years, Cortron had been MacDermid’s sole supplier of its LAVA thermal plate processing systems. According to allegations filed with the court, Cortron entered into a conspiracy in 2008 through which they breached certain agreements with MacDermid, turned over extensive proprietary information to a competitor, and violated anti-trust laws. Although Cortron itself closed its doors in late 2008, the investigation surrounding the lawsuit found that DuPont had agreed to indemnify Cortron for the lawsuit filed by MacDermid and has paid for Cortron’s litigation costs.

Dr. Timothy Gotsick, vice president and general manager of MacDermid Printing Solutions stated, “We are proud to have remained steadfast throughout this long legal battle. Ultimately, our goal is to provide the flexographic printing industry with a competitive approach to thermal plate processing. We are committed to doing so and will continue to fight to keep this market competitive for our customers.”