2007
Apr.6, 2007
Minebea Co., Ltd.
Settlement of Lawsuit in the United States of America
Our company and our affiliated company, Nippon Miniature Bearing Corporation known as NMB Technologies Corp. (an American corporation) and Precision Motors Deutsche Minebea GmbH (a German corporation) (hereinafter collectively referred to as the "Plaintiff") filed a lawsuit with the United States District Court for the District of Columbia in March 1997 against Mr. Georg Papst who had lived in Germany and Papst Licensing GmbH & Co. KG and Papst Licensing Verwaltungsgesellschaft Mit Beschrankter Haftung (hereinafter referred to as "Papst Co., Ltd"), both of which are managed by this gentleman (hereinafter collectively the "Defendant") with respect to the problems arising out of or in connection with the Agreement which had been entered into in the past between the Plaintiff and the Defendant.
In August 2006, based upon the decision against the Plaintiff given by the same District Court, we, the plaintiff, appealed in September 2006. Subsequently, we, the plaintiff carefully reviewed whether we should settle the case based on the cost for litigation. We now announce that both the Plaintiff and the Defendant have reached a settlement.
1. Background leading up to the settlement
| June 1995: | A Patent Agreement regarding motors was concluded between the Plaintiff and Defendant. |
| March 1997: | The Plaintiff filed a lawsuit with the United States District Court for the District of Columbia against the Defendant with respect to problems arising out of or in connection with the Agreement. |
| August 2006: | A decision was given by the above District Court. |
| September 2006: | The Plaintiff filed a Notice of Appeal in the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. |
| April 2007: | A Settlement Agreement is scheduled to be executed by both parties. |
2. Content of the settlement
The Plaintiff and Defendant shall agree to the dismissal of all claims between them and Plaintiff shall pay the Defendant as settlement money a total of five million one hundred thirty six thousand (5,136,000) euros, which is approximately equivalent to eight hundred million (800,000,000) yen.
3. The effect on the performance of our company
A reserve is set up for the settlement money which will be recorded as an extraordinary loss in the Results for Fiscal Year Ended March 31, 2007. Since it is considered there will be negligible effect of this settlement on the business of the company and the effect on the business results is insignificant, we will not amend or revise our current guidance for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2007 at the moment.
| Company Name: | Minebea Co., Ltd. |
|---|---|
| Representative: | Takayuki Yamagishi Representative Director, President and Chief Executive Officer (Code No. 6479 TSE Div. No. 1) |
| Contact Person: | Sakae Yashiro Managing Executive Officer Deputy Chief of Administration Headquarters (TEL: 81-3-5434-8611) |
Product information, contact and other context are subject to change without prior notice.
