Whirlpool Corp. has added another complaint to its litany of lawsuits arising from what the company asserts is infringement of its patent for its “Filter 3” refrigerator water filters, recent Marshall Division of the Eastern District of Texas records show.
The newest suit, filed Feb. 3, targets A & M Distribution, LLC, for allegedly selling Whirlpool-compatible replacement water filters “that infringe United States Patent No. 7,000,894.”
Whirlpool explains that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued the ‘894 patent, entitled “Fluidic Cartridges and End Pieces Thereof,” to it on Feb. 21, 2006.
Per the original petition, the defendant “has offered for sale and sold such infringing products through online retail outlets such as Amazon.”
“A&M’s offers for sale and sales of the Infringing Filter were without permission, authority, or license from Whirlpool,” the suit says.
Court documents add that the plaintiff will suffer “irreparable harm” unless the respondent is enjoined.
Consequently, Whirlpool seeks unspecified monetary damages and a jury trial.
It is represented by attorneys Melissa R. Smith of the law firm Gillam & Smith, LLP in Marshall, as well as Jeffrey D. Harty, Ryan M. Leemkuil and Glenn Johnson of Nyemaster Goode, P.C. in Des Moines and Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Marshall Division of the Eastern District of Texas Case No. 2:16-CV-0106