A federal jury in Richmond, Va., on Sept. 14, returned a $919.9 million verdict in favor of McGuireWoods client E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. (DuPont) against Kolon industries, a South Korean manufacturing company. The eight-member jury found that Kolon industries stole trade secrets and confidential information regarding DuPont’s Kevlar® aramid fiber. McGuireWoods Richmond partners Brian Riopelle and Rod Satterwhite led a team of attorneys from McGuireWoods in this matter along with attorneys from Crowell & Moring, who served as co-counsel in this trial. The verdict of $919.9 million, which was returned after 10 hours of deliberation, is believed to be the largest verdict in Virginia history. A copy of a news release from DuPont can be found here.
Brian Riopelle, who delivered the opening and closing argument to the eight-member jury, was named the “Litigator of the Week” by The American Lawyer along with co-counsel Michael Songer of Crowell & Moring.