Company: BSX
Filing Date: 2025-11-03
Form Type: 10-Q
Source: 0000885725-25-000050
Chunk: 145

Company: BOSTON SCIENTIFIC CORP
Filing Date: 2025-11-03
Form: 10-Q
Item: Part I, Item 8
Chunk 145
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, impairment charges and certain discrete tax benefits primarily related to stock-based compensation.

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As of September 30, 2025, we had $529 million of gross unrecognized tax benefits, of which a net $444 million, if recognized, would affect our effective tax rate. As of December 31, 2024, we had $506 million of gross unrecognized tax benefits, of which a net $423 million, if recognized, would affect our effective tax rate. The change in gross unrecognized tax benefit is primarily related to current year accruals for reserves.

NOTE H – COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES The medical device market in which we participate is largely technology driven. As a result, intellectual property rights, particularly patents and trade secrets, play a significant role in product development and differentiation. Over the years, there has been litigation initiated against us by others, including our competitors, claiming that our current or former product offerings infringe patents owned or licensed by them. Intellectual property litigation is inherently complex and unpredictable. In addition, competing parties frequently file multiple suits to leverage patent portfolios across product lines, technologies and geographies and to balance risk and exposure between the parties. In some cases, several competitors are parties in the same proceeding, or in a series of related proceedings, or litigate multiple features of a single class of devices. These dynamics frequently drive settlement not only for individual cases, but also for a series of pending and potentially related and unrelated cases. Although monetary and injunctive relief is typically sought, remedies and restitution are generally not determined until the conclusion of the trial court proceedings and can be modified on appeal. Accordingly, the outcomes of individual cases are difficult to time, predict or quantify and are often dependent upon the outcomes of other cases in other geographies. During recent years, we successfully negotiated closure of several long-standing legal matters and have received favorable rulings in several other matters; however, there continues to be outstanding litigation. Adverse outcomes in one or more of these matters could have a material adverse effect on our ability to sell certain products and on our operating margins, financial position, results of operations and/or liquidity.In addition, product liability, securities and commercial claims have been asserted against us and similar claims may be asserted against us in the future related to events not known to management at the present time. We maintain an insurance policy providing limited coverage against securities claims and we are substantially self-insured with respect to product liability claims and fully self-insured with respect to intellectual property infringement claims. The absence of significant third-party