Lab-Grown Patent Case Will Go Ahead, Judge Rules
May 12, 20
(IDEX Online) - The case against lab-grown diamond companies accused of patent infringements is to go ahead, after a judge threw out their motions to dismiss.
The Carnegie Institution of Washington and WD Lab Grown Diamonds, the manufacturer licensed to use its chemical vapor deposition (CVD) technology, are jointly bringing a case against competitors at a New York federal court.
Defendants Fenix Diamonds and Pure Grown Diamonds claimed in court that the growth of a diamond, even under controlled conditions, was a natural phenomena and therefore unpatentable and that as a result, the allegations did not plausibly allege infringement.
But Judge Jed Rakoff dismissed their motions in their entirety.
He opened his 29-page opinion and order by referencing the song made famous by Carol Channing and Marilyn Monroe.
"Diamonds are a girl's best friend," he wrote. "Even if they are grown in a lab. At least this is the view of the plaintiffs in these consolidated actions, who describe themselves as 'pioneers in the laboratory synthesis of high-clarity diamonds'."
The plaintiffs claim two patent infringements - one relating to a type of CVD production called microwave plasma CVD, the other concerning a method of repairing visual and other defects in lab-grown diamonds.