IQE settles intellectual property dispute out of court

Semiconductor wafer and materials supplier IQE announced the settlement of an ongoing, multifaceted intellectual property legal dispute on Thursday.

The AIM-traded firm had referred to the dispute in its 2018 and 2019 annual reports, where the associated legal costs were listed as exceptional items.

It said an arbitration hearing was held in September 2019, with the tribunal’s final award delivered in January 2020.

The tribunal’s award was entirely in IQE’s favour.

Since then, the parties had been engaged in litigation at a federal level in the United States over the effect of the tribunal’s decision on cases that had been brought against IQE and IQE employees there.

The company said on Thursday that the parties had settled the claims out of court, and IQE had now received a full and final settlement payment of $2.5m (£1.81m).

“I am very pleased that this matter is now fully resolved,” said chief executive officer Dr Drew Nelson.

“IQE has developed unparalleled materials expertise to meet global demand for advanced semiconductor wafer products, and this is underpinned by our comprehensive intellectual property portfolio which we are prepared to rigorously defend.”

At 0939 GMT, shares in IQE were up 1.69% at 78.3p.