By Tess Stynes
Medtronic Inc. said a federal court jury ruled the
medical-device maker's CoreValve system infringed the Cribier
patent of rival Edwards Lifesciences Corp.
Medtronic said it plans to appeal the decision.
According to Medtronic, Edwards was awarded $392.5 million in
damages, but the jury verdict didn't impose any injunctions. If
Edwards seeks any injunctions, Medtronic plans to oppose the
move.
An Edwards Lifesciences spokesman couldn't immediately be
reached to comment.
"While we are disappointed in the jury's verdict, we continue to
believe that this decision will be overturned on appeal," said Neil
Ayotte, vice president and acting general counsel at Medtronic, in
a statement. "Medtronic has prevailed against Edwards in several
legal actions related to a European counterpart to this patent and
others, and believes the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals will find
no merit to Edward's infringement claim."
Medtronic anticipates U.S. regulatory approval of the CoreValve
System for extreme risk patients by the end of its current fiscal
year, and intends to begin selling the device in the U.S. at that
time.
Write to Tess Stynes at tess.stynes@wsj.com
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