Charles & Colvard and Hunters settle lawsuit

Charles & Colvard, Ltd. and C. Eric Hunter and his wife, Jocelyn Hunter, jointly announced Wednesday that they had settled all claims made by the Hunters in their lawsuit against the company pending in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina.

The Hunters will dismiss their lawsuit against the Morrisville, N.C.-based company and the company’s former CEO, Jeff Hunter. The terms of the settlement are confidential, but, excluding attorneys’ fees, will not have any impact on the company’s results of operations, the statement said. The company expensed approximately $187,000 of attorneys’ fees and other litigation costs for the third quarter ended September 30, with the majority of its costs in connection with this litigation. An additional lesser amount of attorneys’ fees and costs is anticipated to be expensed in the fourth quarter.

“After extensive investigation, we have concluded that Charles & Colvard is not accountable for the misconduct that gave rise to our lawsuit,” Eric Hunter said.

“The company acknowledges and appreciates Eric’s previous instrumental contributions to the development of the intellectual property of Charles & Colvard,” Bob Thomas, president and Chief Executive Officer of Charles & Colvard, said. “We are exploring with Eric his continued contribution to our intellectual property portfolio. I am pleased that we have been able to resolve the dispute amicably.”

Charles & Colvard is the sole source of moissanite, a created jewel used in fine jewelry.

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