Japanese chip materials maker JSR said on Monday that a lawsuit filed against the company by a U.S. think tank would not affect its plan to be bought by a sovereign wealth fund.
“We have no reason to believe this will impact TOB,” JSR CEO Eric Johnson said in an earnings call, referring to the takeover bid by Japan Investment Corporation (JIC).
JSR said it expects the JIC takeover bid to begin at the end of this month at the earliest.
The lawsuit from the SUNY Research Foundation says its researchers were making advances in the field of tin oxide metal photoresists and that Inpria commercialized its intellectual property without permission.
JSR, a major producer of photoresists used in chipmaking, agreed last June to be bought by JIC, which is overseen by Japan's Trade Ministry.
Last month, the Financial Times reported that a takeover offer by German group Merck, which was not disclosed to shareholders, prompted JSR to seek to acquire JIC. “We have not received any other offers besides the JICC offer, neither formal offers nor informal offers,” Johnson said.
