| Other Photos |
 |
|
 |
Severstal and Nucor Make Peace
The yearlong court battle between the U.S. company Nucor Corp. and Severstal subsidiary SeverCorr over stolen technology has been settled out of court. Nucor has announced that it is dropping charges against SeverCorr and its former employee, now SeverCorr vice president for production, John Bell. SeverCorr is forbidden to use Bell’s services in the production of steel products identical to those made by Nucor until June 2009 and to sell automobile body sheet metal with specifications the same as that made by Nucor technology until September 2009. Expert say the technology might cost Severstal $10 million in licensing fees. That money would be well spent and would be rapidly recouped.
Nucor, the second largest steel smelter in the United States, filed suit against SeverCorr and Bell in October 2006. The suit claimed that Bell had confidential information about the technology of the production of specific types of steel that Nucor’s competitor would use. Nucor was able to prevent its former employee from occupying an executive position at SeverCorr and reimbursement from SeverCorr for all income it derived from Bell’s work. A jury would have decided the amount of compensation Nucor would receive.
A source familiar with the situation said that the settlement was mutually advantageous. Nucor was unlikely to receive significant compensation, since SeverCorr did not manufacture the type of steel in dispute, and the prohibition on SeverCorr making that type of steel now has a specific term.
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of July 03, 2008
|
|
|
