U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton denied Adduci's motion for judgment on the pleadings on the malpractice and breach-of-contract claims in the suit filed by Swedish scientist Håkan Lans, but also dismissed Lans' Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act and fraud claims against the firm as barred by res judicata and collateral estoppel.
While the Swedish firm, Advokatfirman Delphi, argued that the court did not have jurisdiction over it and that the case should be dismissed on forum non conveniens grounds and heard in Sweden, the judge rejected those arguments.
The 120-page ruling is the latest turn in the long-running case, which was filed in 2002 and is related to infringement suits Adducci filed behalf of Lans in the late 1990s.
"Although the facts giving rise to this litigation are relatively straightforward, the procedural history of this case is a long and tortured one," the judge wrote.
According to the suit, Lans is the inventor of a color graphics system for computers for which he holds a U.S. patent.
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