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G+T secures ‘record court award’ for major patent client
The national law firm has secured a win for one of its top patent filer clients, following a lengthy litigation battle spanning 10 years.
Emma Musgrave
Gilbert + Tobin’s client, Aristocrat, was awarded profits and damages in the Federal Court of Australia on 15 December following a matter involving Konami Australia Pty Limited.
In handing down his decision, Justice John Nicholas ordered Konami to pay Aristocrat the sum of almost $36 million, including interest. Aristocrat was also awarded its legal costs, including a portion on an indemnity basis.
“The litigation has been on foot for over a decade,” a statement from Gilbert + Tobin said.
“Aristocrat succeeded in the Federal Court both at first instance and on appeal in finding that Konami had infringed the Hyperlink patent before the court moved to consider the quantum aspects.”
The Gilbert + Tobin team was led by partner John Lee, who worked with lawyers Irini Lantis, Giulia Fimmano, Jennifer Saclley and Connor Jarvis. Counsel for Aristocrat were Tony Bannon SC, Andrew Fox SC and Wen Wu.
Commenting on the matter, Mr Lee said: “We are very pleased to have achieved this result in conjunction with our client Aristocrat.
“In my experience, this is likely to be a record award of compensation for a claim of this type.
“Aristocrat invests considerable resources in research and innovation, and this is an endorsement of its valuable IP.”
Editor’s note: At the time of publishing, Konami had yet to formally indicate if they propose to appeal.
Emma Musgrave
Emma Musgrave (née Ryan) is the managing editor, professional services at Momentum Media.
Emma has worked for Momentum Media since 2015, including five years spent as the editor of the company's legal brand - Lawyers Weekly. Throughout her time at Momentum, she has been responsible for breaking some of the biggest stories in corporate Australia. In addition, she has produced exclusive multimedia and event content related to the company's respective brands and audiences.
Prior to joining Momentum Media, Emma worked in breakfast radio, delivering news to the Central West region of NSW, before taking on a radio journalist role at Southern Cross Austereo, based in Townsville, North Queensland.
She holds a Bachelor of Communications (Journalism) degree from Charles Sturt University.
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