The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) issued a decision today affirming an Administrative Law Judge’s ruling that Altria’s NJOY ACE e-vapor products infringe four patents owned by Juul Labs. In today’s decision, the ITC issued a Limited Exclusion Order (LEO) and Cease and Desist Orders (CDOs) prohibiting Altria and NJOY from importing and selling the infringing ACE until the patents expire in 2034 and 2037. The LEO and CDOs are scheduled to take effect on March 31, 2025.
NJOY obtained this infringing product from a Chinese manufacturer without ever securing any permissions or licenses from Juul Labs, a problem that Altria inherited when it acquired NJOY in 2023.
Juul Labs Chief Legal Officer Tyler Mace issued the following statement:
“We are pleased by the ITC’s decision to protect our U.S.-developed innovations against those who seek to import copycat products, principally from China. We welcome fair competition in our mission to switch adult smokers away from combustible cigarettes, but we must protect our valuable intellectual property against the deliberate freeriding on our investments in homegrown U.S. technology. Today’s ruling sends a clear message that this freeriding violates U.S. law and American innovation will be protected.”
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