Biax Requests Exclusion of Imports by Philips

On March 15, 2005, Biax Corporation filed a "Section 337" unfair import complaint at the U.S. International Trade Commission.

The complaint requests that an unfair import investigation be instituted involving "Digital Processors, Digital Processing Systems, Components Thereof, and Products Containing Same." The proposed respondents are Philips Semiconductors B.V. (Netherlands); Philips Consumer Electronics Services B.V. (Netherlands) and Philips Consumer Electronics North America Corporation (USA). The complaint has been designated as confidential and assigned Docket No. 337-2459 for indexing in the Commission's database.

The Commission now has 30-35 days from the filing date of the complaint in which to decide whether to institute the investigation. Upon institution, the proposed respondent will be served with the Complaint via postal mail and an Administrative Law Judge will schedule discovery, conduct a trial, and issue a written "Initial Determination," usually within about 10 months. Due to the expedited nature of these proceedings, and availability of general exclusion orders affecting non-parties, it is important to notify any potential importers of similar products as soon as possible.

Click here for more information on the importance of monitoring these ITC investigations, and click here for an audio-visual Internet presentation on "Unfair Import Investigations at the U.S. International Trade Commission."

For the latest details on a particular Section 337 investigation, or to arrange an in-person presentation on these (and/or other) intellectual property topics, contact Bill Heinze (Bill.Heinze@tkhr.com), at Thomas, Kayden, Horstemeyer & Risley in Atlanta, Georgia.