Samsung lawsuit battles are mounting in the United States just as the South Korean tech giant accelerates the expansion of its semiconductor business in the country.
The company is facing a new patent infringement case involving advanced semiconductor technology, while a separate lawsuit filed by a former Korean American executive alleges wrongful termination, age discrimination and unpaid compensation.
According to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, semiconductor patent company Stella Semiconductor Technologies (SST) filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Samsung Electronics and its U.S. subsidiary on Aug. 7.
Stella alleges Samsung infringed six U.S. patents involving semiconductor structures and wiring technologies.
Samsung Accused of Infringing Six Chip Patents
The patents at the center of the Samsung lawsuit cover microscopic structures used in smartphone semiconductors, including metal contacts, insulating layers, gate isolation structures and wiring arrangements surrounding FinFET transistors.
FinFET, or fin field-effect transistor, is a three-dimensional transistor design in which the channel rises like a fin and the gate wraps around multiple sides. The structure is designed to reduce electrical leakage and improve semiconductor performance.
According to the complaint, Stella alleges its patented technology was incorporated into chips manufactured by Samsung Foundry.
The products identified in the lawsuit include Samsung’s Exynos 1280 and Exynos 1380, as well as Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 888 and Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chips manufactured by Samsung Foundry.
Stella also identified Samsung devices containing the chips as allegedly infringing products, including models across the Galaxy S10 through Galaxy S26 series, Galaxy Z Fold and Flip devices, and Galaxy Tab tablets.
Stella is asking the court to find that Samsung willfully infringed its patents and is seeking damages and litigation costs.
Former Samsung Executive Files Separate Lawsuit
Samsung is also fighting a separate legal battle with a former executive at its U.S. subsidiary.
According to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Heejun Shin, 55, sued Samsung Electronics America in September 2025.
Shin, a former senior director at Samsung’s Mobile Production Center, alleges he was wrongfully terminated because of his Korean national origin and age and was denied compensation he was entitled to receive.
The dispute stems from an internal audit conducted during a company restructuring in 2023.
According to the complaint, investigators discovered a text message in which Shin’s daughter asked him to bring home a work-issued MacBook. Samsung allegedly cited the message as evidence that Shin had improperly used company equipment for personal purposes and violated internal policies.
Shin disputes that explanation, alleging his age and national origin were the actual reasons behind his termination.
His complaint also states that three other Korean employees were terminated around the same time, two of whom were over age 50.
Shin further alleges that he was expecting approximately $84,000 in performance-based compensation in 2024, but was terminated shortly before the payment was due and never received it.
Age Discrimination Claim Can Move Forward
On Aug. 17, the federal court granted part of Samsung’s motion to dismiss but allowed Shin’s age discrimination and breach-of-contract claims to proceed.
For his national-origin discrimination claim, the court gave Shin an opportunity to file an amended complaint with additional allegations supporting the claim.
The two cases add to the legal challenges facing Samsung Electronics as the company continues expanding its semiconductor operations in the United States.
The Korea Daily requested comment from Samsung Electronics America regarding the semiconductor patent case but had not received a response as of 5p.m. on Aug. 23.
