Columbia Sportswear has emerged largely victorious from a patent infringement...

Columbia Sportswear has emerged largely victorious from a patent infringement lawsuit over one of its Omni-Heat reflective technology designs. In late September, a jury in the U.S. District Court of San Diego awarded $3,018,000 in damages against another US-based snow apparel company Seirus Innovative Accessories, headquartered in San Diego. The on-and-off legal dispute started in 2013, when Columbia alleged that Seirus HeatWave gloves used similar heat-reflecting material and ornamental design to those sold by Columbia. In 2016, the company won a ruling against Seirus for copyright infringement. The damages recently awarded represent Seirus's total profits from sales of its HeatWave products. Seirus said it would appeal the court's decision that it had infringed on Columbia's design patents. The jury in the case also found that two claims of one of Columbia's US Omni-Heat utility patents are invalid, but Columbia said it would appeal against this decision.