Ecolab Wins $2 Million as Jury Finds DuBois Breached 2018 Pact

DuBois Chemicals Inc. must pay Ecolab Inc. $2 million after a federal jury in Delaware found it breached a settlement agreement that had resolved a 2018 lawsuit over patents for using silicone-based dry lubricants on conveyors at beverage bottling plants.

Jurors, however, rejected Ecolab’s arguments that DuBois infringed three patents, according to a verdict issued Nov. 3 in the US District Court for the District of Delaware.

Ecolab didn’t immediately comment on the verdict. DuBois didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

DuBois, owned by private equity firm Atlas Investors, bought International Chemical Corp. in late 2019. Minnesota-based Ecolab ...