3M/J&J casting products litigation
This article was originally published in The Gray Sheet
Executive Summary
3M says it will receive $129 mil. from Johnson & Johnson as settlement of a 1986 suit that claimed violation of 3M patents by certain J&J casting products. The settlement follows a July 1991 Minneapolis federal district court ruling awarding 3M $116 mil. in damages and interest for the alleged infringement ("The Gray Sheet" Aug. 26, 1991, p. 8). The verdict was upheld by the Washington, D.C. federal circuit court on Sept. 30, 1992. Most of the $129 mil., which will be reported in 3M's fourth quarter results, will be offset by $115 mil. in before-tax charges 3M is taking related to "rationalization of manufacturing operations and write-downs of certain assets" designed to "enhance [3M's] competitiveness and productivity"....