If you can’t beat them, sue them: Jawbone sues Fitbit again (updated)

Jawbone, which controls less than 5 percent of the wearables market, is suing market leader Fitbit for the second time in two weeks, this time for patent infringement.

In Jawbone’s complaint the company accuses Fitbit of infringing on a patent for “a wellness application using data from a data-capable band.”

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Jawbone said in the suit that it plans to complain about Fitbit to the International Trade Commission. If the ITC buys Jawbone’s story, it has the power to prevent the import of Fitbit devices and component parts, said a report from the Wall Street Journal.

Jawbone is asking the court to award compensatory damages plus court costs, and to bar Fitbit from selling products that use its patented technology.

Fitbit was defiant Wednesday after reports of the suit surfaced. “Since its inception, Fitbit has more than 200 issued patents and patent applications in this area,” the company said in a statement. “Fitbit plans to vigorously defend itself against these allegations.”

The new suit comes just a few weeks after San Francisco-based Jawbone filed another suit against Fitbit in a state court May 7. (See the full text of the lawsuit here.) Jawbone believes that some of its employees who have left to work for Fitbit have taken sensitive Jawbone information with them, or accessed it online with company passwords they shouldn’t have had.

The Jawbone suit also comes just a few weeks after Fitbit filed papers to hold an initial public offering. The company, also San Francisco-based, hopes to raise up to $100 million, according to the filing.

Updated 7 p.m. PST with Fitbit statement.