LWRC sues Sig Sauer
LWRC has a bone to pick with Sig Sauer; they’ve filed a lawsuit against Sig over the SIG516 rifle. LWRC holds a patent on a “Self-cleaning gas operating system for a firearm,” and they’re claiming that Sig Sauer’s 516 is a direct infringement on this patent. The lawsuit filed by LWRC (which can be viewed here) seeks financial damages to include interest and costs; the amount is unspecified.
I’ve never used or broken down LWRC’s or Sig’s rifles… yet… however I’ve handled them at SHOT, which didn’t tell me anything about the internals. So, I honestly don’t know how this will play out. From my naive legal perspective, a “self cleaning gas operating system for a firearm” isn’t exactly a new concept being that there are plenty of rifles that use similar systems. However, LWRC’s legal counsel obviously believes that Sig Sauer’s gas system on their SIG516 Patrol and Precision Marksman models, as stated in the suit, are using the exact same gas system. It’ll be interesting on how this plays out, and we at Gunblog.com will be sure to keep you guys posted.
Sig Sauer's 516 Patrol Rifle
LWRC M6A2