In Boston Scientific Corp. v. Cordis Corp., C.A. No. 10-315-SLR, Judge Robinson recently denied defendant’s renewed motion for judgment as a matter of law regarding lost profits damages and granted plaintiffs’ motion for enhanced damages — ultimately doubling the jury’s award. Id. at 37. Following the Court’s grant of summary judgment of infringement in favor of plaintiffs in a patent dispute involving cardiovascular stents, the Court held a jury trial on willfulness and damages. Id. at 3-4. Following that trial, the jury awarded plaintiffs nearly $18.5 million in lost profits damages and $1.0 million in reasonable royalties based on defendant’s infringement. Id. at 4. In post-trial submissions, defendant filed a renewed motion for judgment as a matter of law challenging the jury’s award of lost profits damages. Id. at 7. Defendant argued that the award was not supported by “substantial evidence” because, among other things, plaintiffs had not proven that the defendant’s infringing product was the “but-for cause” of the decline in plaintiffs’ sales. Id. at 7. The Court disagreed. Id. at 25. The Court found that the jury’s award of lost profits was, indeed, supported by sufficient evidence. Id. at 25. Specifically, in its analysis, the Court concluded that there was sufficient evidence to support that a “specific market” existed for defendant’s infringing product and that the demand for defendant’s infringing product and plaintiffs’ product was “interchangeable.” Id. at 23. The Court further concluded that sufficient evidence was presented that, for example, the “doctors’ demand” for defendant’s infringing product would have transferred to plaintiffs’ product in the absence of defendant’s infringing product. Id. at 23.
In addition to denying defendant’s renewed motion for judgment as a matter of law, the Court concluded that, although the case was not necessarily an exceptional one under 35 U.S.C. § 285, plaintiffs were nonetheless entitled to an award of enhanced damages under § 284 and that doubling the jury’s award was “reasonable under the circumstances.” Id. at 36. The Court determined that there existed “clear and convincing evidence that [defendant’s] conduct [was] sufficiently culpable to justify enhanced damages.” Id. at 36. The Court noted that the “Read factors” favoring enhancement included: (1) the extent to which defendant was aware of and investigated the scope of the patent-in-suit, (2) defendant’s litigation conduct, (3) defendant’s financial condition, (4) defendant’s motivation for harm, (5) the non-closeness of the case, and (6) the lack of remedial action on the part of the defendant. Id. at 36. The Court also noted that none of the Read factors specifically weighed against enhancement. Id. at 36.
Boston Scientific Corp. v. Cordis Corp., C.A. No. 10-315-SLR
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