US court upholds $140 million compensation in TCS-Epic Systems case

An appeals court in the United States has held that punitive damages of $280 million against Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) in a trade secret lawsuit filed by American medical software company Epic Systems were excessive.

However, the court in Chicago upheld compensatory damages award of $140 million, TCS said in regulatory filings at stock exchanges on Friday.

TCS said it is exploring the options available to it, adding that it believes there is no evidence of it misusing Epic's information. "TCS will vigorously defend its position before the relevant court," it said.

According to reports, Epic had filed the lawsuit in 2014 against TCS alleging that the IT services company had stolen its intellectual property. In 2016, Epic won a jury award of $940 million.

In 2017, the Wisconsin court judge lowered the amount of the award to $420 million to comply with caps on punitive damages in such cases. In January 2018, TCS said it made a $440 million letter of credit available to Epic Systems.

In March last year, the Wisconsin judge who initially heard the case reduced the verdict amount but upheld the verdict following an initial appeal by TCS. Later, TCS filed a notice of appeal with the Seventh Circuit Court in Chicago.

Epic is a private company based at Verona in Wisconsin and a leading provider of medical records systems used in hospitals and other healthcare facilities throughout the United States.