Whirlpool Wins Another Court Victory Over LG
Benton Harbor-based Whirlpool Corp. (NYSE: WHR) announced that the United States District Court in Chicago refused to award any relief to LG on the last remaining claim in a lawsuit filed by LG in 2008.
LG's lawsuit had sought to ban Whirlpool from using the word steam to describe its steam dryers. However, Whirlpool proved to the Court and jury that its steam dryers, from its Marion, Ohio factory, do in fact use steam.
The court found that "Whirlpool has established that its dryers do, in fact, use steam", and that "LG did not introduce expert testimony or credible evidence of even a single Whirlpool customer, retailer, or trade representative who expressed confusion."
The court's decision follows an October 2010 jury verdict that favored Whirlpool, and marks the third time in little more than a year that Whirlpool has prevailed against LG in court.
Whirlpool's innovative "press of a button" technology combines existing heat resources with an automatic water mist, creating steam right inside the drum where the clothes are. At trial, Whirlpool demonstrated that its one-touch steam design was notably different than the LG system, which uses a manually-filled external water cartridge that must be replenished with cold water prior to each use.
Whirlpool is the world's leading manufacturer and marketer of major home appliances, with annual sales of more than $18 billion in 2010, 71,000 employees, and 66 manufacturing and technology research centers around the world. The company markets Whirlpool, Maytag, KitchenAid, Jenn-Air, Amana, Brastemp, Consul, Bauknecht and other major brand names to consumers in nearly every country around the world. Additional information about the company can be found at www.whirlpoolcorp.com.
