Coronary stent patent case resolution (again)
This article was originally published in The Gray Sheet
Executive Summary
A stent patent case that has been in federal court since the 1990s will get closer to possible resolution Sept. 30 when a federal judge in Delaware plans to issue final judgment, reinstating infringement damages plus interest from Boston Scientific and Medtronic to Johnson & Johnson/Cordis that were initially awarded in 2000. The infringement findings, relating to Cordis' Palmaz balloon expandable stent patent, and damages of $324 million from Boston Scientific and $271 million from Medtronic, were set aside in 2002 in response to appeals and other procedural steps. A new trial was ordered, and in 2005 a jury again found in favor of Cordis. Boston Scientific and Medtronic no longer offer stents using the infringing platforms. On Sept. 15, Judge Sue Robinson rejected Boston Scientific's motion for yet another new trial, a decision that the firm plans to appeal