Micron Technology, Inc. v. United Microelectronics Corporation

Background

In a July 11, 2019 order, the court stayed—paused—the civil case brought by Micron Technology, Inc. against United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC) and Fujian Jinhua Integrated Circuit Co., Ltd. The stay was pending resolution of a related federal criminal case against UMC, Jinhua, and three individuals: Stephen Chen, J.T. Ho, and Kenny Wang. Micron later moved to lift the stay, arguing that new circumstances justified allowing the civil case to proceed.

Court’s Analysis

The court found that the criminal proceedings against UMC had fully concluded. UMC had pleaded guilty under a plea agreement to one count of theft of trade secrets, judgment had been entered against it, the remaining counts against UMC had been dismissed, and the government had agreed not to bring additional charges against UMC arising from the investigation that led to the indictment. The court therefore found that UMC’s concern about defending the civil case while also defending the criminal case no longer supported a stay.

The court also rejected UMC’s argument that the stay was needed because Chen, Ho, and Wang might invoke their rights against self-incrimination if UMC relied on their testimony. The court stated that there was little to no likelihood that those individuals would come to the United States for trial, meaning that continuing the stay based on the charges against them could make the stay indefinite.

The court reached a different conclusion regarding Jinhua. Apart from the reduced likelihood that the individual defendants’ charges would be resolved, little had changed since the earlier stay order. The criminal case against Jinhua remained pending, and the court was concerned that Jinhua’s participation in discovery and other parts of the civil case could require it to disclose information that might compromise its criminal defense. The court found that keeping the stay in place would not be unreasonably long because Jinhua’s criminal trial was scheduled for seven months later, after which another motion to lift the stay could be filed. The court also found that judicial efficiency favored having the civil case proceed against UMC and Jinhua together, in one trial, because their pretrial issues and evidence were likely to overlap substantially.

Disposition

Judge Maxine M. Chesney denied Micron’s motion to lift the stay. The court also vacated the hearing scheduled for January 8, 2021. The order did not decide the merits of Micron’s civil claims; it addressed whether the civil case should remain paused while the related criminal proceedings continued.