WASHINGTON, March 11 (Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court on

Wednesday overturned a $481 million ruling that New York's

Columbia University had won against software company Gen Digital ( GEN )

for infringing patents related to cybersecurity

technology.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit said that

Columbia's patents may be invalid and sent the case back to

Virginia federal court.

The appeals court also overturned the lower court's decision to

hold Gen Digital's ( GEN ) former law firm, Quinn Emanuel Urquhart &

Sullivan, in contempt for litigation misconduct in the case.

A Columbia spokesperson declined to comment on the rulings.

Spokespeople for Gen Digital ( GEN ) and Quinn Emanuel did not

immediately respond to requests for comment.

Columbia sued Gen Digital ( GEN ) in Richmond, Virginia, in 2013,

alleging the company's antivirus software and other security

products infringe six patents related to intrusion-detection

systems. A jury determined in 2022 that the company infringed

two Columbia patents and awarded the school $185 million in

damages.

U.S. District Judge Hannah Lauck increased the award to more

than $481 million in 2023 after finding that Gen Digital ( GEN )

infringed the patents willfully. The Federal Circuit said on

Wednesday that Columbia's patents may be invalid because they

cover abstract ideas and sent the case back for the Virginia

court to analyze their validity.

Lauck had held the company's former Quinn Emanuel attorneys

in contempt for failing to comply with a court order to disclose

their communications with an unfavorable witness, a former Gen

Digital employee whom the firm kept from testifying at trial.

The appeals court said Quinn Emanuel should not have been forced

to disclose the communications because they were covered by

attorney-client privilege.