Jury orders Bell Helicopter to pay $16 million to California supplier in trade secrets case

A Texas jury has ordered Bell Helicopter to pay $16 million to Rogerson Aircraft Corp. for unfair competition. The jury found that Bell shared proprietary information with a rival supplier but did not find evidence of trade secret theft. Rogerson, a former supplier of avionics and display systems for Bell, filed the lawsuit in 2017, seeking over $100 million. The company alleged that Bell provided designs they developed together to a competitor. The case centered on claims that Bell aimed to bypass regulatory approval for new systems by labeling them as replacements for Rogerson's products. Bell Helicopter has not commented on the verdict.