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Masimo (NASDAQ:MASI) fell 5.3% in after hours trading after a judge declared a mistrial in trade secrets trial against Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) over the Apple Watch.
U.S. District Judge James Selna declared a mistrial late Monday after a jury failed to reached a unanimous decision. The jury told the judge that six of the seven jury members planned to vote in favor of Apple (AAPL) at the Santa Ana, California federal court, according to court observers.
Masimo (MASI) alleged in its suit against Apple (AAPL) that the iPhone maker improperly used trade secrets for a blood-oxygen monitoring sensor used in its Apple Watch. The trial started on April 4.
Masimo (MASI) and a co-plaintiff had sought damages of $3.1 billion from Apple (AAPL) related to the trade secret claims, though a federal judge last Wednesday ruled the maximum Apple would be liable for $1.85 billion, according to media reports, including Bloomberg.
Masimo told Bloomberg in a statement that it planned to retry the case.
“While we are disappointed that the jury was unable to reach a verdict, we intend to retry the case and continue to pursue legal redress against Apple,” Masimo said in the statement.
Apple (AAPL) also commented after the judge declared the mistrial.
“We deeply respect intellectual property and innovation and do not take or use confidential information from other companies,” Apple (AAPL) said in a statement to Bloomberg. “We are pleased that the court correctly rejected half of the plaintiffs’ trade secret allegations, and will now ask the court to dismiss the remaining claims.”
