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US Appeal Court Affirms Flexiteek Patent against PlasDeck
On November 8th 2010, the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals issued an Opinion on the
Flexiteek International and Flexiteek Americas (Flexiteek) vs. PlasTEAK and PlasDECK
(PlasDeck) appeal. The Court issued a Per Curium Affirmed ruling regarding the Verdict
which Flexiteek obtained against PlasDeck in Federal District Court for the Southern District
of Florida in July 2009 for infringement of U.S. Patent Number 6,896,881 (the "'881 Patent").
Following the Verdict in 2009, William Gribble of PlasDeck appealed all of the Federal
District Court Rulings to the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals, including that Flexiteek was
the rightful owner of the '881 Patent, that the Patent was valid and enforceable, that the Tek-
Dek products previously distributed by PlasTeak, and the products manufactured and sold by
PlasDeck infringe upon the Patent. By issuing a Per Curium opinion, the Federal Circuit
found that none of PlasDeck's challenges to these issues had any merit. By issuing a Per
Curium ruling, the Federal Court essentially bars William Gribble and PlasDeck from taking
any further appeals to stall enforcement of the prior Verdict in favor of Flexiteek. In other
words, PlasDeck's appeal of the 2009 Verdict was totally without merit.
PlasDeck posted and published many misrepresentations, untruths, and outright lies about
Flexiteek and the legal process while the Appeal was pending. Flexiteek decided not to
respond to these unethical tactics in kind, but decided instead to let the United States legal
system speak for itself. It now has, which underscores the length to which PlasDeck and
William Gribble will go to undermine Flexiteek and its products. The Federal Circuit has
affirmed that Mr. Gribble and his PlasDeck products infringe upon the '881 Patent. Flexiteek
strongly urges boat manufacturers and customers to consider these facts when choosing their
decking products for the future.
Even though William Gribble and PlasDeck appealed the rulings in the Federal District Court,
they also decided to ask the United States Patent and Trademark Office to review and revoke
the '881 Patent. The process, while still pending, has resulted in at least 28 new claims for the
'881 Patent, which will make Flexiteek's patent even stronger than it was before.
Boat manufacturers and customers should be reassured that the Flexiteek products, backed by
the master patent in the field, represent the best synthetic decking product on the market. To
that end, Flexiteek would like to thank William Gribble for asking for the re-examination of
the '881 Patent, because with his intervention the '881 Patent, affirmed on appeal, is now
stronger than ever.
Flexiteek International with our Florida based company Flexiteek Americas Inc. have been
active in the US for 8 years and we are committed to serving the American market with
quality marine decking. Since the year 2000 Flexiteek has been awarded patents for USA,
Canada, Europe (EU), China, South Korea, South Africa and Australia, as the global leader in
synthetic marine decking systems.
The Board of Directors
Flexiteek International & Flexiteek Americas
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