Medtronic must pay $226 million fine

The headquarters of Medtronic in Fridley, Minnesota.
MPR Photo/Annie Baxter
A federal judge is ordering Fridley-based Medtronic to pay a $226 million patent infringement award to rival Johnson & Johnson.
Tuesday the judge rejected Medtronic's arguments to overturn a federal jury verdict reached in September. The jury had found that Medtronic's spinal screws violate a patent owned by Johnson & Johnson.
U.S. District Judge Edward Harrington in Boston has scheduled a hearing on Dec. 19 to consider Johnson & Johnson's request to halt Medtronic from using the patented spinal screws.
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