China’s Supreme People’s Court is due to hear Sinovel’s appeal against earlier rulings by lower courts, which refused to dismiss on grounds of jurisdiction a copyright infringement case brought by AMSC, the US company says.

AMSC is seeking about $6m compensation and a cease-and-desist order against Sinovel in the case, which is one of four it lodged against the Chinese wind group in September last year.

AMSC vice president and general counsel John Powell says: “We are eager to complete our hearing on October 26 and are hopeful that China’s Supreme People’s Court will demonstrate that it is protecting the interests of all companies – both domestic and foreign.

“A ruling by the Supreme Court in our favour will ensure that we can present our compelling evidence at substantive hearings regarding Sinovel’s theft and use of AMSC intellectual property.”

The legal battle between AMSC and Sinovel – formerly its biggest customer – centres on theft of wind turbine IP by a former employee of the US company in Austria, allegedly at the behest of Sinovel. The employee was jailed by an Austrian court last year.

AMSC has two other legal actions active in China, including a $450m claim in a trade-secret infringement case, which it says could be the largest IP case ever undertaken there.

It is also involved in commercial arbitration in Beijing over Sinovel’s refusal to accept contracted shipments of components.

(By Andrew Lee, London)