Hartford-Empire Co. v. Shawkee Mfg. Co.

163 F.2d 474
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Third Circuit
DecidedOctober 1, 1947
Docket9293, 9315
StatusPublished
Cited by20 cases

This text of 163 F.2d 474 (Hartford-Empire Co. v. Shawkee Mfg. Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hartford-Empire Co. v. Shawkee Mfg. Co., 163 F.2d 474 (3d Cir. 1947).

Opinion

McLAUGHLIN, Circuit Judge.

These cross appeals are the aftermath of the Supreme Court decisions in Hazel-Atlas Glass Co. v. Hartford-Empire Co., 322 U.S. 238, 64 -S.Ct. 997, 88 L.Ed. 1250, and Shawkee Manufacturing Co. et al. v. Hartford-Empire Co., 322 U.S. 271, 64 S. Ct. 1014, 88 L.Ed. 1269. Back in 1928 through gross fraud Hartford-Empire had obtained a certain “gob feeding” patent for use in the manufacture of glass containers. In the same year it sued Hazel-Atlas for infringement of the patent. The suit was dismissed in the District Court. The consequent judgment was reversed in 1932 by this Court 1 with the fraudulent foundation of the patent, a spurious article in a trade paper, in evidence in the matter, to some extent at least influencing the result. In 1933, Hartford sued the defendants for infringement of the same patent and the District Court, in view of the then outstanding Circuit judgment, upheld Hartford’s ■ claim. This Court affirmed for the same reason. 2

In 1941 the fraud was finally brought into the open by the anti-trust prosecution of United States v. Hartford-Empire Co. et al., D.C.N.D.Ohio, W.D., 46 F.Supp. 541. As a result, a bill of review proceeding was commenced in this Court by the defendants. Relief was denied (one judge dissenting) on three grounds: (1) Because of the uncomplaining and inactive course pursued by the defendants and by Hazel-Atlas with respect to the said article though they had some knowledge thereof; (2) because the article had not been basic to the result arrived at by this Court; (3) because of lack of jurisdiction. 3 That decision was reversed by the Supreme Court, supra, in an opinion which scourged Hartford for its corruption and detailed the steps by which the District Court was to set aside its judgment in favor of Hart *476 ford, deny the latter all relief against infringement of the patent involved, “and permit Shawkee and the others to bring such further proceedings as may be appropriate in accordance with their prayer for relief.” [322 U.S. 271, 64 S.Ct. 1015.]

In accordance with that broad command of the Supreme Court these defendants filed their counterclaims in the original District Court suit. Hartford’s general defenses to the counterclaims were: 1. That there had been a settlement between the parties which was dispositive of the entire litigation; 2. that the statute of limitations barred the claims; 3. that the finding of fraud by the Supreme Court was not binding upon the District Court. After trial, the lower Court rejecting those defenses ordered restitution of amounts paid by the defendants to Hartford because of the direct order of the injunction decree. Recovery was denied to the defendants on all other items of the counterclaims. 67 F.Supp. 26. The defendants in Number 9293 appeal from that part of the judgment. In Number 9315, Hartford-Empire appeals from that part of the decision which rejected its above mentioned defenses and found for the counterclaimants on those sums paid to Hartford because of the express direction of the injunction decree.

Hartford asserts that the settlement on the accounting in connection with its original judgment amounts to a settlement subsequent to and in place of the fraudulently secured judgment. Much law is cited to show that fraud cannot later be used to upset such a settlement. That law is not disputed. But the settlement here was not in place of a judgment. It was in place of a sum found due on an accounting which was itself merely a part of and a compliance with the fraudulently secured judgment. As the District Court correctly held, that settlement and accounting collapse with the judgment and the monies secured thereby must be returned, with interest.

The second contention by Hartford is that the counterclaims are out of time since they were not filed till more than eleven years after the commencement of the suit which resulted in the permanent injunction of October 19, 1934. This is completely answered by the Supreme Court opinion in Shawkee, supra, 322 U.S. at page 273, 64 S.Ct. at page 1014, 88 L.Ed. 1269, where the Court finds that there was no direct proof of Hartford’s fraud available until “after the United States offered its evidence in the anti-trust suit in 1941.”' The District Court quite properly found' as a fact that the defendants proceeded with due diligence to obtain relief from the injunction decree “after obtaining due proof that Hartford-Empire Company had committed said fraud.”

The third of Hartford’s main general -defenses is that the finding of fraud by the Supreme Court should not have been considered final by the District Court and should have been relitigated. It is difficult to follow the argument advanced in support of that proposition. Fraud was the basis of the petition filed by the defendants in this Court. Hartford denied the fraud. The Supreme Court said in the Hazel-Atlas opinion, supra, 322 U.S. at page 245, 64 S.Ct. at page 1001, 88 L.Ed. 1250, “Here, even if we consider nothing but Hartford’s sworn admissions, we find a deliberately planned and carefully executed scheme to defraud not only the Patent Office but the Circuit Court of Appeals.” As the result of the findings, of fraud and of timeliness in the prosecution thereof (with the findings applying equally to both the Hazel-Atlas and to the Shawkee cases), the Supreme Court ordered that Hartford be denied all relief against infringement of the particular patent. Those findings were necessary to the decisions of the Supreme Court, for, as Mr. Justice Black said in the Hazel-Atlas opinion, 322 U.S. at page 245, 64 S.Ct. at page 1001, 88 L.Ed. 1250, “Every element of the fraud here disclosed demands the exercise of the historic power of equity to set aside fraudulently begotten judgments.” The present suggestion that other evidence would make it impossible to infer fraud was submitted in substance to the Supreme Court in Hartford’s applications for rehearing which were denied. Plainly, the fraud issue was litigated in this Court and in the Supreme Court and was finally disposed of by the latter tribunal. In line with our decision in Hartford-Empire Co. v. Shawkee Mfg. *477 Co., 3 Cir., 147 F.2d 532, at page 536, the District Court was entirely justified in so determining and in refusing to permit Hartford to reopen that question.

In addition to the sums paid to Hartford in the accounting proceeding which were allowed by the lower Court, the other elements of the counterclaims which are pressed on the appeal of the injured parties are:

1. Return of royalty fees paid under contracts to Hartford for the use of Hartford controlled feeders after the use of the royalty free feeders had been enjoined. (Glenshaw and McKee).

2. Litigation and traveling expenses and disbursements in connection therewith. (All three counterclaimants).

3. Non-royalty feeder dismantlement expense. (Glenshaw and McKee).

4. The damage to Glenshaw for the loss of its fruit jar business.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Astrazeneca Lp v. Breath Limited
542 F. App'x 971 (Federal Circuit, 2013)
Klugh v. United States
620 F. Supp. 892 (D. South Carolina, 1985)
Maryville Academy v. Loeb Rhoades & Co., Inc.
530 F. Supp. 1061 (N.D. Illinois, 1981)
U.S. Industries, Inc. v. Gregg
457 F. Supp. 1293 (D. Delaware, 1978)
Trio Process Corp. v. L. Goldstein's Sons, Inc.
533 F.2d 126 (Third Circuit, 1976)
Moraine Products v. ICI America, Inc.
379 F. Supp. 261 (N.D. Illinois, 1974)
Allen v. Ideal Products, Inc.
300 F. Supp. 349 (W.D. Pennsylvania, 1969)
Borden Co. v. Clearfield Cheese Co.
244 F. Supp. 366 (W.D. Pennsylvania, 1965)
Glenshaw Glass Co. v. Commissioner
23 T.C. 1004 (U.S. Tax Court, 1955)
William Whitman Co. v. Universal Oil Products Co.
125 F. Supp. 137 (D. Delaware, 1954)
Singer Mfg. Co. v. Redlich
109 F. Supp. 623 (S.D. California, 1952)
Dictograph Products Co. v. Sonotone Corp.
95 F. Supp. 126 (S.D. New York, 1951)
Skelly Oil Co. v. Universal Oil Products Co.
86 N.E.2d 875 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1949)
Lanova Corp. v. Atlas Imperial Diesel Engine Co.
64 A.2d 419 (Superior Court of Delaware, 1949)
United States v. Hartford-Empire Co.
73 F. Supp. 979 (D. Delaware, 1947)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
163 F.2d 474, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hartford-empire-co-v-shawkee-mfg-co-ca3-1947.