Nichia Corp. and former researcher Shuji Nakamura are negotiating a settlement worth ¥500 million to ¥1.5 billion over their high-profile dispute on the patent for the blue light-emitting diode, according to sources familiar with the lawsuit.
The Tokyo High Court recommended in December that the 50-year-old researcher, now a professor in the United States, settle with the chemical maker based in Anan, Tokushima Prefecture.
Nichia has appealed a lower court ruling from January 2004 that ordered it to pay Nakamura ¥20 billion in compensation for the invention.