NATICK, Mass. (AP) – Boston Scientific Corp. said that a federal jury awarded it $19.5 million in a dispute with rival Johnson & Johnson over stents.
A jury in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware found that J&J’s Cordis unit owed Boston Scientific for infringing its Jang patent, which covers coronary stent technologies. The jury awarded $18.5 million in lost profits and $1 million in reasonable royalties to Boston Scientific.
A stent is a mesh tube used to hold an artery open after it is surgically cleared of blockages. Many are coated with drugs.
In 2010, Boston Scientific settled several disputes pending in the same court with J&J over drug-coated stent technologies. In all, Boston Scientific agreed to pay about $1.73 billion in settlements to resolve disputes dating back to 2003.
Those disputes involved several drug-coated stents, including Cordis’ Cypher stent and Boston Scientific’s Liberte, Taxus Liberte and Taxus Express stents.
Date: May 11, 2011
Source: Associated Press
