Consulting and services giant Accenture has filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Guidewire Software over an insurance claims management technology.
It is seeking an undisclosed sum in damages in addition to an injunction in relation to the products and services covered by the allegations made in the suit.
Accenture said in a statement its lawsuit alleges that Guidewire "misappropriated Accenture trade secrets relating to the design, coding and implementation of the claims management technology Accenture developed and patented."
"Accenture has a long history of designing and developing innovative, technology-based solutions that help our clients transform their businesses and achieve high performance," said Pierre Nanterme, group chief executive for Accenture's financial services arm. "As part of our ongoing efforts to defend vigorously our intellectual property rights around the world, we intend to take actions like this lawsuit to be sure that our intellectual property is not unfairly exploited."
Guidewire, which provides products for property and casualty insurers, rejected the claim and said it had not yet seen the complaint.
"Guidewire did not and would not misappropriate trade secrets or willfully infringe on any patents," John Raguin, Guidewire's chief executive, said in a statement.
"We will review the details of the allegations and respond in the appropriate manner."
The suit was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware.
