Guidant Corporation v. Medtronics, Inc.

Medtronic, Inc. today announced that a Delaware jury rendered verdicts in patent litigation between Medtronic and the ACS subsidiary of Guidant Corporation. The jury found that the Guidant Lau patents at issue are valid and that certain Medtronic stents(a), including the S7 and Driver stents, infringe those patents.

Today's jury verdict represents the end of the jury phase of the trial but does not conclude this court proceeding. A further hearing regarding Medtronic's claim that Guidant's patent is unenforceable due to "inequitable conduct" will be conducted by the U.S. District Court in Delaware at a time yet to be determined by the Court. The outcome of the "inequitable conduct" hearing will conclude the evidence phase of the trial and could impact today's jury verdicts. "Inequitable conduct" generally refers to the willful disregard of patent filing procedures, including the identification of all "prior art" in patent filings.

The jury's findings today do not inhibit Medtronic from selling its coronary stents in the United States and has no jurisdiction over the sale of such products outside the United States. In addition, the jury's verdicts have no immediate impact on the commercialization of the Endeavor(TM) Drug Eluting Coronary Stent outside the United States or the ENDEAVOR Clinical Program.

Medtronic, Inc., headquartered in Minneapolis, is the world's leading medical technology company, providing lifelong solutions for people with chronic disease. Its Internet address is www.medtronic.com.

Jury verdict for Guidant Corporation.

Unknown

Unknown

None