The owners of the patents from the once-pioneering but now-defunct Israeli electric vehicle company Better Place are demanding approximately $250 million from the Chinese EV manufacturer Nio. The claimants accuse Nio of “exploiting, without permission or license, the Israeli Better Place model, technology, experience and IP,” thereby infringing on its intellectual property. Better Place, which filed for bankruptcy in 2013, was a trailblazer in battery charging and battery-switching technology for electric vehicles. Although headquartered in California, it was led from Israel by its founder, Shai Agassi. At its height, the company operated 21 battery-swapping stations across Israel. Following the company’s collapse, its patent portfolio was acquired by Charge Peak, a company registered in the British Virgin Islands and controlled by Canadian businessman Larry Krauss. Charge Peak is currently the sole owner of the portfolio’s European patents. Nio was established in 2014.…