Following a bench trial in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, the court entered final judgment in favor of SiriusXM, holding that Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft’s patent infringement claims were barred by equitable estoppel. Fraunhofer, which filed suit in 2017 over patents related to multicarrier modulation technology, argued that SiriusXM lost its sublicense rights following a third party’s bankruptcy. The court found that Fraunhofer’s years-long delay in asserting infringement, first raised in 2015, was misleading and ultimately prejudicial.
The case centered on whether SiriusXM relied on Fraunhofer’s prolonged silence in continuing to use the accused technology. Through witness testimony and contemporaneous documents, the defense established that SiriusXM understood this silence to mean no claims would be asserted. Relying on that belief, SiriusXM continued to invest in, develop, and implement the technology across its platform.
DOAR supported defense counsel at Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer LLP with an integrated approach encompassing strategic advising, graphics consulting, and evidence presentation. Our team worked closely with counsel to identify the most persuasive arguments and structure their effective use at trial, while translating a highly technical and historically complex licensing record into clear, accessible visuals and ensuring their seamless presentation in court.
