ROCKPORT, Maine — A Rockport man who was accused of concocting an elaborate scheme to bilk an international window treatment firm of nearly $5 million has agreed to repay the company.
The settlement and judgment against Jason T. Throne and Patent Services Group Inc. were filed Nov. 21 in U.S. District Court in Colorado.
Hunter Douglas Inc., based in Pearl River, New York, filed a lawsuit on June 30 in U.S. District Court in Colorado claiming that Throne, Mary C. Throne and Patent Services Group committed fraud against the company. Throne was dismissed as a party to the lawsuit on Nov. 21 with the settlement specifically stating that while she made misrepresentations to the company, she was an “innocent spouse.”
The settlement calls for the Thrones to sell their home on Pandion Lane in Rockport, 42 acres of undeveloped land on the Barnestown Road in Camden, and land in Colorado with the proceeds to be given to Hunter Douglas within five days of the sale. The Rockport property is assessed by the town at $2 million and was purchased by the Thrones in 2006. The Camden land is assessed at $87,100 and was purchased in 2003. An assessment of the Colorado property was not immediately available.
Jason Throne was Hunter Douglas’ senior patent lawyer for more than 20 years. The lawsuit claims that beginning in 1999, Throne and his wife created a company called Patent Services Group based in Rockport. Jason Throne then had that firm bill Hunter Douglas for patent search services that were never performed, according to the lawsuit.
Between 2000 and 2014, Patent Services Group billed Hunter Douglas $30,000 to $40,000 on a monthly basis, according to the suit. While Throne was authorized to hire outside firms and spend money for such work, Hunter Douglas said it prohibits salaried employees such as Throne from work that could create a conflict of interest.
The lawsuit alleges that the Thrones would fax invoices to Hunter Douglas from Patent Services Group to give the bills an air of legitimacy, although their names were not present on any billing documents. The couple also rented a post office box in Colorado where payments were to be sent.
The Thrones then traveled from Maine to Colorado to pick up the checks, which eventually totaled at least $4.8 million, according to the lawsuit.
A patent engineer at Hunter Douglas questioned Throne in November 2013 about the “astronomical” charges from Patent Services Group, the suit states. The engineer said she had never heard of the company, but Throne assured her it was a company he regularly used.
The company fired Throne in June for cause, according to the lawsuit.
Hunter Douglas produces window treatments and architectural products such as dropped ceilings, according to its website.
No criminal charges have been filed.
The Thrones also were involved in a civil court dispute in Maine in 2013 over whether their neighbors could cut the tops of some trees on the Thrones’ property to preserve a view of the ocean. The parties eventually reached an agreement to allow for trees to be trimmed.