In a courtroom clash that stirred up more than just soup cans, an Illinois federal jury has slapped Campbell Soup Co. with a $17 million verdict over patent infringement claims tied to gravity-fed display racks — the kind you see stacked with cans in grocery aisles across America.
The verdict, entered Monday, follows a tense trial pitting Campbell against Gamon Plus Inc. and Gamon International Inc., who accused the soup giant and others of infringing two U.S. patents — Nos. 8,827,111 and 9,144,326 — that cover the innovative rack design.
While the jury also issued a $398,564 judgment against Trinity Manufacturing LLC, no monetary damages were awarded against The Kroger Co. or Meijer Inc., both co-defendants in the case. The trial concluded Friday, with the verdict itself remaining under seal for now.
Patents, Soup Cans, and Gravity: The Core of the Case
The dispute boiled down to Campbell’s use of racks that allegedly copied Gamon’s patented gravity-feed system — devices that rely on slanted rails and simple physics to roll products forward as others are removed.
In January, U.S. District Judge Georgia N. Alexakis granted summary judgment of infringement, rejecting Campbell’s attempt to argue that its racks didn’t infringe on Gamon’s designs.
“Campbell provides all the components — both the racks and the soup cans — necessary to infringe upon each element of the claim,” Judge Alexakis wrote.
The ruling solidified Gamon’s case, leaving jurors to determine whether the patents were valid and to assess damages for infringement.