US firm files patent complaint against L'Oreal

California company Olaplex has filed a complaint against the French cosmetics manufacturer L'Oreal for patent infringement of a hair product, according to a legal document obtained Wednesday by AFP.

According to the complaint filed Tuesday in a California court, Olaplex accuses L'Oreal of violating a patent on a product to prevent damage during hair coloring.

Olaplex is seeking damages due to the harm to its business.

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Olaplex claims that in mid-2015, L'Oreal approached the company with a view to a possible acquisition and as a result had access to "non-public, confidential, proprietary information from Olaplex about its technology," including an unpublished patent application.

"After receiving that confidential information L'Oreal ceased pursuing the acquisition of Olaplex, and instead willfully took and copied Olaplex's technology without authorization to create three slavish 'me too' knockoffs that are the subject of this patent infringement action," Olaplex charges in the court documents.

These three products identified in the complaint as Matrix Bond Ultim8, Redken pH-Bonder and L'Oreal Professional Smartbond.

L'Oreal denies any wrongdoing.

"We strongly oppose the merit of these claims and the validity of the patent and L'Oreal USA will defend this position vigorously," a company spokesperson told AFP by email.