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Edwards Lifesciences Attains Another Major Patent Victory Against Medtronic
- Client News
- April 11, 2014
Edwards Lifesciences won another major victory in its patent battle with Medtronic over transcatheter heart valve technology, when Chief Judge Gregory M. Sleet of the United States District Court for the District of Delaware granted a preliminary injunction in Edwards' favor. Medtronic was enjoined from infringing Edwards' United States Patent 5,411,552 by selling and/or offering to sell in the United States its CoreValve device. As the court concluded in its written opinion issued on Tuesday, "enforcing patent rights is especially important where there is egregious conduct to be addressed and deterred, as there is here. Medtronic disregarded the law in infringing Edwards' patent and boldly continued to thumb its nose at the law by continuing its conduct even after being found to be a willful infringer. The court cannot ignore the fact that it would serve as a reward of sorts to Medtronic and an incentive for onlookers to behave as Medtronic has should the court permit Medtronic to freely commence sales of its device." The court's order ensures that patients that cannot be treated with an Edwards transcatheter heart valve can still be treated with Medtronic's CoreValve device at its currently trained centers. The preliminary injunction follows a 2010 jury verdict that awarded Edwards $74 million for Medtronic's willful infringement of the '552 Patent.
The Paul, Weiss team included, among others, retired litigation partner John Nathan, litigation partner Catherine Nyarady and counsel Brian Egan and Kripa Raman.