Merchant & Gould, an intellectual property law firm, today announced that its client Rudolph Technologies has been awarded $1.29 million, plus attorney’s fees, as a result of a contempt finding against its adversary, Camtek Ltd. Minnesota U.S. District Court Chief Judge Michael Davis entered the order. The Court found Camtek Inc. in contempt for violating its 2009 injunction. The injunction prohibited Camtek from contacting potential clients in the United States for the purpose of selling its Falcon chip-inspecting device which a jury found infringed Rudolph Technologies’ patent. The Court stated that “The Defendant knowingly and in bad faith violated the Court’s clear and unambiguous injunction.”

Dan McDonald, a partner with Merchant & Gould and lead counsel for Rudolph Technologies and its subsidiary August Technology Corp., argued the Motion for Contempt.  “We are troubled by Camtek’s defiance of the Court’s injunction but pleased at the court’s findings and the relief entered,” said McDonald.

Also involved from Merchant & Gould were Heather Kliebenstein, Rachel C. Hughey and Joseph E. Lee. The patent at issue is U.S. Patent Number 6,826,298. The case remains pending after a limited remand by the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.