113 N.J. Eq. 255 | N.J. Ct. of Ch. | 1933
The receivers appointed by this court for the above named insolvent foreign corporation were required by an order made herein to show cause why they should not turn over to a receiver appointed by the court of chancery of the State of Delaware such assets of said corporation as came to their possession. The defendant is a corporation organized under the laws of the State of Delaware. It maintained its business plant in the State of New Jersey and conducted all of its business therein and therefrom. For the receivers appointed by this court it was urged that inasmuch as practically all the creditors of the corporation filed porofs of claim with them this court should order a distribution pro rata among all creditors whose claims have been "allowed" by them, regardless of whether such creditors are residents or non-residents of the state, and that a claim of Radio Corporation of America, a non-resident creditor, based upon a patent license as to which considerable proofs were taken by the receivers but no determination made as to the validity thereof, should, because of legal objections urged against same by the receiver of the Delaware court, be turned over to him, together with such proofs, for action thereon by him. For the Radio Corporation of America it was urged that inasmuch as the receivers of this court had taken considerable proofs as to said claim they should settle the question as to the validity thereof and allow or disallow same. Said claimant relies upon the rule of law that a licensee of a patent, to the extent that it continues to use the license, is estopped from denying the licensor's title, and that the licensee cannot set up the invalidity *257
of a patent, the right to use which it holds by license, unless there has been something equivalent to an eviction of the licensee. Ferry-Hallock Co. v. Progressive Paper Box Co.,