Federal court upholds Matthews International win in Tesla arbitration case

Pittsburgh-based Matthews International Corp. said Oct. 2 that a federal judge in California has confirmed an earlier arbitration ruling in the company’s favor and rejected Tesla’s attempt to overturn it.

“This ruling is a significant validation of our technology, our intellectual property, and our commitment to innovation,” said Joe Bartolacci, president and CEO of Matthews. 

The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California issued the opinion and order, which Matthews said reinforces its leadership in designing and manufacturing machinery used in battery electrode production, including its dry battery electrode (DBE) solutions.

In June 2024, Tesla sued Matthews, its former supplier, over trade secrets related to DBE technology, which is a key component of Tesla’s 4680 battery cells. Tesla alleged Matthews stole and shared its trade secrets with competitors. 

However, Matthews won an arbitration case against Tesla and has now secured a federal court ruling that affirms the arbitration award, strengthening its right to promote its DBE technology. The court’s decision also denies Tesla’s attempt to overturn the arbitration, leaving Matthews free to expand its presence in the DBE sector.

“For over 20 years, Matthews has invested in solutions that enable the future of energy storage and electrification,” Bartolacci said. “Our precision engineering expertise and proprietary DBE technology will help customers worldwide reduce costs and improve performance for next-generation batteries.”

The company also noted that it has spent more than two decades developing rotary manufacturing technologies that streamline the production of energy storage devices.