Align Technology, Inc. (Align), a dental devices company, announced that the company has been notified of a purported declaratory judgment action filed against the company on February 17, 2009 by ClearCorrect, Inc. (ClearCorrect). The suit was filed in the US District Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division. Align became aware of the filing on February 17, 2009, but has not been served with a copy of the complaint.
In the Complaint, assigned case # H-09-470 and captioned ClearCorrect, Inc., Plaintiff, vs. Align Technology, Inc., Defendant, ClearCorrect alleges that a “controversy exists between Align and ClearCorrect concerning the validity of Align’s patents that relate to the manufacture and sale of a clear aligner therapy system” and regarding “the infringement of Align’s patents” by ClearCorrect. The complaint seeks a judgment declaring that unidentified Align patents are invalid and unenforceable and that ClearCorrect does not infringe the unidentified Align patents.
Align is not currently involved in any lawsuit with ClearCorrect, nor has Align previously communicated with ClearCorrect regarding the subject matter of the complaint or any of Align’s 165 issued patents. ClearCorrect’s Complaint is entirely unrelated to a previous lawsuit filed by Align against Willis Pumphrey, ClearCorrect’s chief executive officer, for breach of contract, trademark infringement and copyright infringement. That lawsuit was settled to Align’s satisfaction in 2007 by the payment of over $330,000 to Align by Pumphrey and a stipulation by the parties that Pumphrey was decertified by Align and is no longer authorized to treat patients with Invisalign products.
Align has reviewed the allegations contained in the ClearCorrect filing and believes they are without merit. The company intends to vigorously defend itself against the complaint.