American Standard Sues Kohler

Products American Standard Inc. filed a lawsuit against Kohler Co. on May 23 to prevent Kohler from promoting and selling its newly introduced Meadowland single-bowl kitchen sink. In the suit, American Standard charges that the Kohler sink infringes upon a patent held by American Standard for its Silhouette sink design. Both sinks are sold through retail and wholesale outlets, and bear ornamental designs.

The Kohler Meadowland kitchen sink entered the Kohler product line in October 1999 and was introduced to the trade in January 2000. According to Paul McGrath, American Standard’s senior vice president, "American Standard invests heavily in research and development for new products and will continue to aggressively enforce its intellectual property rights in those products against all known infringers."

Kohler general counsel Natalie Black says, "Kohler Co. believes that the claims made in the suit filed by American Standard with regard to our Meadowland kitchen sink are entirely without foundation. American Standard seems to think that the outcome of some of its earlier cases with smaller manufacturers will be dispositive of this case. We disagree and intend to contest the matter vigorously."