Medtronic to Pay Abbott Laboratories $400M in Intellectual Property Resolution

Medtronic Inc. will pay $400 million to settle an intellectual property dispute with Abbott Laboratories Inc. over heart stent technology, according to the Minneapolis, Minn.-based firm.

Terms of the agreement stipulate that Medtronic and Abbott Park, Ill.-based Abbott will not sue each other in the field of coronary stent and stent delivery systems for at least 10 years.

Medtronic also agreed to pay $42 million to evYsio Medical Devices. Medtronic sublicenses evYsio’s stent design technology to Abbott.

Medtronic expects to report in its first quarter financial results a special charge to be calculated in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. The one-time impact of this settlement will be treated as a specified item in the third quarter earnings, according to Abbott.

“We are happy to have this behind us…Anytime we can get past litigation is a good day,” said Chuck Grothaus, senior manager for corporate public relations at Medtronic, in an interview with Medical Product Outsourcing.

“We are pleased with the settlement as it allows us to focus on efforts on competing in the marketplace and on developing innovative treatments for patients,” said Adelle Infante, manager of external communications for Abbott.