Juul accuses NJOY of patent infringement
Juul Labs has asked the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) to block the sale and import of the NJOY Ace vaping device, claiming the product infringes multiple Juul patents. It also filed a lawsuit against NJOY in the U.S. District Court for Arizona
Juul Labs has asked the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) to block the sale and import of NJOY Ace vaping devices, claiming that the product infringes several of Juul’s patents. It has also filed a lawsuit against NJOY in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona.
“Our technology was designed in the United States and is protected by our strong patent portfolio. It underpins the development of one of the most effective products for helping adult smokers switch away from combustible cigarettes, changing the habits of more than 2 million adult smokers in this country,” said Juul Labs Chief Legal Officer Tyler Mace in a statement. “In this field, innovation is critical to advancing tobacco harm reduction.”
“When others infringe our technology, we have no choice but to protect our intellectual property.”
Juul Labs said the ITC complaint follows three previous successful actions the company brought before the commission, all of which resulted in bans on the import and sale of infringing products.
“Just as we defended our company’s intellectual property in three successful prior ITC cases, we intend to achieve the same result here,” Mace said.
Juul Labs’ complaint also targets Altria Group, which agreed in March to acquire NJOY after exchanging its minority investment in Juul for a license to heated tobacco product intellectual property.
The NJOY Ace device received U.S. Food and Drug Administration marketing authorization in April 2022.
