(PRESS RELEASE) NEW YORK — Fenix Diamonds, an international supplier of high-end type IIa lab-grown diamonds, prevailed in a federal lawsuit filed by the Carnegie Institution of Washington and Washington Diamonds (also known as “WD Lab Grown Diamonds” or “M7D Corporation”). Fenix is headquartered in New York City. The case was extensively covered by the business and trade media in recent months.
In their lawsuit, Carnegie and Washington Diamonds alleged that the high-quality of Fenix’s lab-grown diamonds indicates that they are made through processes that infringe patents held by the Plaintiffs. Since the lawsuit began in January 2020, Fenix has maintained that Carnegie’s and Washington Diamonds’ theories lacked any scientific basis.
On June 16, 2021, a Federal Court announced that Fenix’s lab-grown diamonds and the processes used to make them do not infringe the patents. The Court entered judgment for Fenix and dismissed all of Carnegie’s and Washington Diamonds’ claims with prejudice. Only Fenix’s counterclaims against the Plaintiffs will proceed to trial. The Court’s opinion was delivered by United States District Judge Jed S. Rakoff for the Southern District of New York.
Fenix offered the following comment in response to the Court’s decision:
“Fenix supplies diamonds with integrity. Our diamonds are meticulously grown for weeks to attain the particular combination of size, color, and clarity that customers expect from the Fenix brand.
Fenix’s success in the lawsuit reflects our devotion to the market, to our products, and especially, to our customers. Their support over the past eighteen months has been incredible. The best is yet to come.”
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Fenix was represented by the Chicago office of Leydig, Voit & Mayer, Ltd. and the New York City office of Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP. The patents asserted against Fenix were U.S. Patent Nos. 6,858,078 and RE41,189. The Court’s decision is publicly available.
