Background
A technology company that had raised $20 million, partnered with NASA, and previously held a valuation of more than $100 million entered Chapter 7 liquidation. At the time of the engagement, the company reported $23,270 in annual revenue, and the estate held $1,652 in cash.
The estate’s primary asset was a portfolio of 68 granted U.S. patents related to Li Fi and Visible Light Communication technology. In a niche market, with no comparable transactions or identified buyers, stakeholders sought to recover value for approximately 75 investors.
Engagement
Our experts supported the sale process for the patent portfolio. Patent Analysis and Reverse Engineering (PARE) experts from Ocean Tomo, a part of J.S. Held, developed detailed claim charts and translated patent claims into commercial use cases for prospective buyers.
Results
This process resulted in value recovery through a Section 363 sale process for the bankruptcy estate and its stakeholders resulting from a qualified stalking horse bid, a competitive auction, and a successful sale to a buyer intending to deploy the technology in healthcare, defense, industrial automation, and secure communications.
