U.S. government owes over $100 million for TSA's patent infringement

The U.S. government owes a patent holding company at least $103 million because of the Transportation Security Administration's misuse of its technology for handling trays at airport security checkpoints, a Washington, D.C.-based federal court said.

St. Petersburg, Florida-based SecurityPoint's founder Joseph Ambrefe offered the TSA a license to his patent in 2005 in exchange for the exclusive right to advertise on the trays at U.S. airports.

The court said the TSA began using the same method with its own equipment later that year at most or all of the airports under its control, and SecurityPoint sued the U.S. government for patent infringement in 2011.The government conceded that it had used the technology since 2008 in 10 airports including Dallas/Fort Worth, Boston Logan, Phoenix Sky Harbor and all three major Washington, D.C.-area airports.

The court rejected the government's arguments that SecurityPoint's patent was invalid in 2015, leaving questions about the extent of the government's infringement and how much it owed in damages.

After a trial last year, Senior U.S. Judge Eric Bruggink of the Court of Federal Claims said in an August opinion unsealed Friday that the government owes SecurityPoint $103.6 million in royalties from 2008 through the date of the opinion.

The court's award was lower than SecurityPoint's request for $618 million in royalties, but higher than the government's proposal for a $12.6 million lump sum.

SecurityPoint attorney Bradley Graveline of Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton said in a statement that he and his client were pleased with the decision and the "Historic result," which they expect to be the "Largest patent infringement damages award of its kind against the Government." Laura Burson of Sheppard Mullin also led SecurityPoint's legal team.

https://www.reuters.com/legal/transactional/us-government-owes-over-100-million-tsas-patent-infringement-2021-10-25/