The eight-justice
court is weighing whether genetic-testing kits made by Thermo
Fisher-owned Life Technologies Corp infringed upon patents held
by Promega Corp.
In a letter issued on Wednesday, Scott Harris, the clerk of the
court, said Roberts belatedly learned that Life Technologies was
owned by Thermo Fisher. The letter noted that "the ordinary
conflict check conducted in the chief justice's chamber's
inadvertently failed to find this potential conflict."
Roberts will therefore step aside, meaning only seven of the
court's eight justices will decide the case, which was argued on
Dec. 6.
Roberts' 1,212 shares are worth around $175,000 based on the
current share price of around $145.
Supreme Court justices routinely recuse themselves in cases
involving companies in which they own stocks.
(Reporting by Lawrence Hurley; Editing by James Dalgleish)
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