Compuware Accuses IBM Of Ambush Tactics In Piracy Suit

IBM dismissed the accusation as "a litigation tactic."

Detroit-based Compuware announced Wednesday it had filed a motion requesting a default judgment in the case after IBM produced source code that it previously had said it did not have. Compuware wants the court to exclude the new evidence from trial and order IBM to reimburse it for legal expenses that stemmed from IBM's earlier failure to produce the source code.

Compuware sued IBM in March 2002, claiming IBM had copied its software products and was reselling them under the IBM nameplate. A second Compuware suit filed in July 2002 said IBM used its dominance in the market to undercut competitors on software prices.

Armonk, N.Y.-based IBM has denied the charges and filed six counterclaims of patent infringement on its software by Compuware.

In the motion filed Friday in U.S. District Court in Detroit, Compuware said IBM officials revealed on Aug. 11 they had found the source code "in the exact locations that IBM swore under oath had been exhaustively searched."

"Introducing this evidence more than two years after the court requested it and less than 90 days before the scheduled start of the trial is nothing but a last-ditch attempt to sandbag Compuware with additional burdens and delays," said Thomas M. Costello Jr., Compuware's general counsel.

IBM spokesman Tim Breuer said the company was confident the motion would be denied.

"Compuware's motion is a litigation tactic designed to draw attention away from the fact that the materials located and produced by IBM confirm that Compuware's trade-secret and copyright claims are without merit," Breuer said.

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