ITC Bans Asian Tires that Flout Toyo Design Patents

On Thursday, July 24th, 2014, the U.S. International Trade Commission banned the import of certain kinds of automotive tires from China and Thailand because they violate design patents held by Toyo Tire Holdings of America. Among the design patents found to have been infringed was one obtained for Toyo Tire by Sterne Kessler. The patents at the heart of this litigation were D610,975, D610,976, D610,977, D615,031, D626,913, and D653,200.

The ITC, siding with Toyo Tires, issued a limited exclusion order forbidding the import and sale of tires that violate Toyo’s patents. The products at issue in the investigation are replacement tires which violate the patented tread and side wall patterns on Toyo and Nitto brand tires.

To view the decision, please visit the ITC’s website.