CLEVELAND, Nov. 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Parker Hannifin issues this
statement to clear up any potential misunderstandings about the outcome of
Eaton Corporation's patent litigation against Parker.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/19990816/PHLOGO )
The Nov. 18 ruling referenced in the Eaton news release stems from a
trial held in Feb. 2003, involving a patent suit filed by Eaton over a
hydraulic coupling for special mobile applications.
Eaton's suit involved three patents encompassing 80 separate claims.
Parker prevailed outright in the claims for all three patents covering all
current Parker products.
For one discontinued Parker product, Eaton prevailed in three of 80
patent claims.
In court, Eaton sought $3 million to pay attorneys' fees incurred for
a ruling of less than $50,000 in damages. The court denied Eaton's $3 million
request on the basis that Parker acted in good faith, and did not copy Eaton's
product.
The outcome of the case was that Parker maintained its right to sell
its own patented technology, including products improved with a safety feature
to prevent accidental disconnects. Parker agreed to pay the damages amounting
to less than $50,000 to bring closure to the matter.
Parker assures its customers that none of its products will need to be
removed from the market as a result of this ruling. As the market leader in
quick-connect couplings, Parker offers hundreds of different styles, as well
as customizable options, for mobile and industrial customers.
With annual sales of $6.4 billion, Parker Hannifin is the world's leading
diversified manufacturer of motion and control technologies and systems,
providing precision-engineered solutions for a wide variety of commercial,
mobile, industrial and aerospace markets. The company employs more than 46,000
people in 44 countries around the world. For more information, visit the
company's web site at www.parker.com , or its investor information site
at www.phstock.com .
SOURCE Parker Hannifin Corporation
11/21/2003
CONTACT: Media, Lorrie Paul Crum, Vice President - Corp. Communications,
+1-216-896-2750, or lcrum@parker.com, or Financial, Pamela Huggins, Vice
President - Treasurer, +1-216-896-2240, or phuggins@parker.com, both of Parker
Hannifin
Web site: http://www.phstock.com
(PH)
