Judge Rules Against LightSquared in Claims Against GPS Firms

A U.S. judge dismissed the bulk of two lawsuits by LightSquared and equity owner Harbinger Capital Partners, reports Reuters. The suits accused Trimble, Garmin and Deere & Co. of misleading them about interference concerns and hastening the company’s fall into bankruptcy.

In an opinion issued Feb. 5 in Manhattan federal court, Judge Richard Berman threw out Harbinger’s lawsuit, and denied nine of 11 claims by LightSquared.

LightSquared has been in bankruptcy since 2012, when the Federal Communications Commission revoked its license to build a planned wireless network over concerns it could interfere with GPS.

According to Reuters:

The lawsuits alleged that Deere, Garmin International , Trimble Navigation Ltd, and a GPS industry group led LightSquared to believe the planned network would not pose an interference risk. It wasn’t until LightSquared had pumped $4 billion into the project, the plaintiffs argued, that the GPS industry voiced their concerns.

Judge Berman dismissed many claims from both plaintiffs, including breach of contract and civil conspiracy, leaving alive only LightSquared’s claims for negligent misrepresentation and constructive fraud.

Because the judge did not dismiss all claims, LightSquared could still be able to probe the GPS companies’ books and records during discovery.