Toshiba Corp. said Monday it and its American unit have been granted a new trial in their dispute with former U.S. ally Lexar Media Inc. over jointly developed flash-memory technologies.
In a decision Friday, the Superior Court of the State of California ordered a new trial, nullifying the decision of a jury earlier this year that ordered Toshiba and Toshiba America Electronic Components Inc. to pay $465 million in damages to the digital equipment maker.
Although the court ordered that the damages be reviewed, it did not overturn the jury's finding that Toshiba shared Lexar's trade secrets with SanDisk Corp., a Lexar rival, in breach of fiduciary duty.
Toshiba said it is pleased the court has granted a new trial but is disappointed that it rejected the company's claim that the finding was erroneous, and plans to appeal.
Toshiba teamed up with Fremont, Calif.-based Lexar, on developing NAND flash memory technology in 1997. But the Japanese company later joined hands with SanDisk and competed against Lexar.
Lexar sued Toshiba in 2002, seeking $1 billion in damages.