By 1980, Wolf was operating a mail order business selling Williams trains and parts out of his bedroom in his parents' home.
Turned down, Wolf decided to market the locomotive himself, citing reduced orders from Lionel for MTH's replicas as the reason.
Then-Lionel CEO Richard Kughn, who learned of the decision from a flyer at a train show, responded by canceling MTH's Lionel dealership.
In December 1999, three former employees of Samhongsa rival Korea Brass were convicted of industrial espionage for stealing and using proprietary MTH designs to produce models for Lionel.
[citation needed] In April 2000, MTH again sued Lionel, this time for industrial espionage, citing as evidence original electronic drawing files and the precedent set in the South Korean criminal courts.
MTH's critics also say the company patented some elements of DCC, which was supposed to be an unencumbered open standard.
Although MTH is disliked by Lionel collectors because its reproductions have lowered the market value of all but the most pristine vintage Lionel equipment and disliked by some other hobbyists because of its aggressive marketing and legal tactics, MTH is widely credited with bringing innovations into a hobby that had changed very little since the 1950s as well as lowering prices.
The suit requested that MTH stop using the trademarks, pay damages, and send UP-branded inventory to the railroad for destruction.
On November 8, 2006 MTH Electric Trains and Union Pacific Railroad announced that they had amicably settled the trademark infringement case that U.P.
The settlement benefits both parties as well the entire model railroad industry, allows Union Pacific to continue to protect its intellectual property, and authorizes MTH’s use of Union Pacific’s trademarks and paint designs on model train products and accessories.
While an option to continue the relationship was proffered, the renewal terms offered by Lionel for an extension beyond 2019 were not conducive for any future M.T.H.