This week the Supreme Court of the United States denied a petition from Epic Systems, a medical-software maker, that challenged an appeals court’s decision to reduce the amount awarded to Epic in its lawsuit with Tata Consultancy Services.
The suit dates back to 2014, when Verona, Wisconsin-based Epic initially sued IT company Tata Consultancy Services on grounds that Mumbai-based Tata had stolen trade secrets from Epic and produced a competing software — Med Mantra. In 2016, Epic was originally awarded $940 million in damages, of which $240 million was in compensatory damages and $700 million in punitive damages.
However, in 2017 the total amount was reduced to to $420 million, of which $280 million was in punitive damages and $140 million was in compensatory damages, by a Wisconsin judge based on a law that the punitive damages could not exceed double the amount of compensatory damages.
Then that punitive amount was reduced again by an appeals court in 2020 to just $140 million, bringing the total awarded to $280 million.
That Seventh U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals three-judge panel said in its 2020 decision, “[Tata’s] conduct, while reprehensible, was not egregious, and multiplying the substantial compensatory award – calculated on the basis of [Tata’s] benefit rather than Epic’s loss – is unnecessary to reflect Epic’s uncertain economic harm.”
Epic fought back in 2021 in a writ of certiorari, asking the Supreme Court to review its case.
On Monday the Supreme Court ruled on the appeal deciding to uphold the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision: Epic will receive $280 million total from Tata, a far cry from the original $940 million awarded back in 2016. Tata is to pay Epic $140 million in punitive damages and another $140 million in compensatory damages.
Epic Systems Corp v. Tata Consultancy Services Ltd, U.S. Supreme Court is case No. 20-1426. An Epic spokeswoman declined to comment on the litigation.
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