Deere loses appeal in patent dispute with AGCO and Precision Planting

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A federal appeals court in the U.S. has sided with AGCO and Precision Planting in a long-running legal dispute with John Deere over high-speed planter patents.

On Friday, Jan. 24, a judge with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit upheld an earlier U.S. District Court jury ruling, ruling in favour of AGCO and its subsidiary, Precision Planting.

The legal battle over technology used for seed placement while planting at high speeds entered the U.S. courts in 2018, when Deere filed a lawsuit alleging AGCO/Precision Planting’s SpeedTube and vSet2 products violated patents for the seed delivery components in John Deere’s ExactEmerge planters.

“We are pleased with the court decision in favor of AGCO and Precision Planting. This ruling validates our commitment to innovation and the integrity of our products. We remain dedicated to delivering high-quality solutions to our customers and will continue to focus on advancing our technology,” says AGCO, responding to the Jan. 24 ruling.

Precision Planting was acquired by AGCO in September 2017 after its previous owner, former Monsanto subsidiary The Climate Corporation, cancelled a deal to sell the planter equipment company to Deere. The parties began discussing claims over seed delivery patents in 2017 when Precision Planting was still under Monsanto’s ownership.

Read the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit decision here.

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