DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
Boston Scientific Corp. (BSX) said it would pay $716 million to
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) to settle more than a dozen
patent-infringement lawsuits involving devices to remove blockages
in coronary arteries.
The payment is within Boston Scientific's legal reserves and
will be made from cash on hand.
"We are pleased we have been able to significantly reduce the
amount of outstanding litigation we have with Johnson &
Johnson," said Chief Executive Ray Elliott, adding the company will
continue to work on resolving other suits.
The medical-device maker has been involved in myriad intricate
legal moves over stents, involving the major players in the $4
billion market: J&J, Medtronic Inc. (MDT) and Abbott
Laboratories (ABT). The companies have sued to prevent competitors
from introducing new stents and to claim royalties on each other's
devices.
"We are pleased to resolve several of these patent litigations,"
said Seth Fischer, chairman of Cordis Corp., the J&J unit
involved in the suit.
J&J expects to record most of the settlement payment as a
special item in the fourth quarter.
Other companies also have been working to resolve the
litigation. In July, Medtronic said it would pay Abbott $400
million to settle all patent fights between the companies and clear
the air regarding stents. That followed deals Medtronic reached
earlier this year to resolve stent-patent disputes with both Boston
Scientific and J&J.
Boston Scientific's shares closed Tuesday at $10.68 and were
inactive after hours. The stock is up more than a third this year
but is still down 10% from a year ago.
-By Kathy Shwiff, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2357;
Kathy.Shwiff@dowjones.com