"Death Penalty Sanctions" Granted

On May 20, 2021, Judge Alan Albright issued a written order granting plaintiff Performance Chemical Company's (PCC) Motion for Sanctions for True Chem's concealment of vital evidence. The court had already cancelled the pending trial and ordered a temporary injunction against True Chem following the parties' oral arguments on March 26, 2021.

The key issue throughout this patent infringement litigation was whether True Chem automated its frac trailers. Judge Albright recounted True Chem's numerous deliberate attempts to hide material evidence of automation. For example, after "a specific mandate from the Court to provide a complete frac trailer for inspection," PCC unbolted and removed the key piece of automation equipment from a trailer, a task that "would require considerable effort," so that it would not be available for inspection by PCC. Further, "True Chem's employees -no other phrase encapsulates it -lied under oath when asked direct questions about