Jeld-Wen responds to antitrust ruling
Jeld-Wen has responded to a ruling made by the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia last week regarding the ongoing antitrust and trade secrets litigation with Steves & Sons, Inc. (Steves).
The court judged against Steves in the amount of $1.2 million, which is in accordance with a previously announced jury verdict in Jeld-Wen’s favor on its claims that Steves misappropriated the door manufacturer’s trade secrets.
Additionally, the court granted Jeld-Wen’s motion to vacate the jury verdict on Steves’ breach of contract claims related to the quality of the company’s doorskins. The ruling eliminates $2.2 million of damages under the previously announced jury verdict on Steves’ breach of contract claims against Jeld-Wen.
Also, the court ruled that divestiture of the company’s facility in Towanda, Pa, the primary asset acquired in Jeld-Wen’s 2012 acquisition of CraftMaster, Inc. and one of the company’s four domestic doorskin manufacturing facilities, is an appropriate remedy in the antitrust litigation.
A final judgment on the antitrust claims and the breach of contract claims has not yet been entered in the case, and Jeld-Wen said it does not expect a final judgment until later this year. Jeld-Wen said it opposes any judgment that might award damages to Steves.
According to the latest ruling, if divestiture of the Towanda facility is included in the final judgment, the divestiture would not be required until after the appeal process is complete. The initial appeal process is expected to take approximately 9-18 months following entry of a final judgment. If necessary, the appeal process would be extended by an additional 6-18 months.
“Jeld-Wen firmly maintains that it has not violated any antitrust laws. We will use all of our available resources to continue to challenge the erroneous antitrust verdict,” said Gary Michel, Jeld-Wen president and CEO. “While the ruling on the remedy of divestiture of our Towanda facility is disappointing, it will not alter our focus as we will continue to provide industry-leading products and services to our customers. Additionally, we will continue to support the growth and development of our dedicated employees at the Towanda facility.”
Jeld-Wen noted that if it is required to sell the Towanda facility, the move would be “both unprecedented and fundamentally incorrect as a matter of law.” The Charlotte, N.C.-based window and door company said that no U.S. court has ever permitted divestiture as a remedy in private
For the fiscal year ended 2017, the Towanda facility generated external revenues of approximately $120 million from Steves and other third-party customers related to doorskins and other building products. The majority of Towanda’s doorskin manufacturing capacity is used by the Jeld-Wen in its own door assembly operations.
Jeld-Wen continues to supply doorskins to Steves in the ordinary course of business pursuant to a long-term agreement that is currently set to terminate in September 2021.
The court judged against Steves in the amount of $1.2 million, which is in accordance with a previously announced jury verdict in Jeld-Wen’s favor on its claims that Steves misappropriated the door manufacturer’s trade secrets.
Additionally, the court granted Jeld-Wen’s motion to vacate the jury verdict on Steves’ breach of contract claims related to the quality of the company’s doorskins. The ruling eliminates $2.2 million of damages under the previously announced jury verdict on Steves’ breach of contract claims against Jeld-Wen.
Also, the court ruled that divestiture of the company’s facility in Towanda, Pa, the primary asset acquired in Jeld-Wen’s 2012 acquisition of CraftMaster, Inc. and one of the company’s four domestic doorskin manufacturing facilities, is an appropriate remedy in the antitrust litigation.
A final judgment on the antitrust claims and the breach of contract claims has not yet been entered in the case, and Jeld-Wen said it does not expect a final judgment until later this year. Jeld-Wen said it opposes any judgment that might award damages to Steves.
According to the latest ruling, if divestiture of the Towanda facility is included in the final judgment, the divestiture would not be required until after the appeal process is complete. The initial appeal process is expected to take approximately 9-18 months following entry of a final judgment. If necessary, the appeal process would be extended by an additional 6-18 months.
“Jeld-Wen firmly maintains that it has not violated any antitrust laws. We will use all of our available resources to continue to challenge the erroneous antitrust verdict,” said Gary Michel, Jeld-Wen president and CEO. “While the ruling on the remedy of divestiture of our Towanda facility is disappointing, it will not alter our focus as we will continue to provide industry-leading products and services to our customers. Additionally, we will continue to support the growth and development of our dedicated employees at the Towanda facility.”
Jeld-Wen noted that if it is required to sell the Towanda facility, the move would be “both unprecedented and fundamentally incorrect as a matter of law.” The Charlotte, N.C.-based window and door company said that no U.S. court has ever permitted divestiture as a remedy in private
For the fiscal year ended 2017, the Towanda facility generated external revenues of approximately $120 million from Steves and other third-party customers related to doorskins and other building products. The majority of Towanda’s doorskin manufacturing capacity is used by the Jeld-Wen in its own door assembly operations.
Jeld-Wen continues to supply doorskins to Steves in the ordinary course of business pursuant to a long-term agreement that is currently set to terminate in September 2021.