MANSFIELD – Medical device giant Covidien Ltd. has sued Davol Inc. of Cranston and its parent company for patent infringement in a case that pits two local firms against each other.
Mansfield-based Covidien argues that Sorbafix, a mesh fixation device and applier recently released by Davol, infringes on claims in a 2001 patent held by Covidien for “a system for controllably discharging fasteners from an applicator,” the company said.
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Covidien wants the judge to bar Davol from continuing to manufacture and sell Sorbafix. The company, formerly Tyco Healthcare, is also seeking compensatory damages.
“We will vigorously protect our intellectual property,” Covidien’s global surgical franchise and portfolio management executive, Dave Motley, said in a statement.
The suit was filed in U.S. District Court in Delaware.
Separately, Davol’s parent company, Murray Hill, N.J.-based C.R. Bard Inc., this afternoon released its first-quarter earnings report.
Bard said its profit jumped 45 percent to $113.2 million or $1.10 a share, compared with $78 million or 75 cents a share a year ago, although those numbers were skewed by acquisition costs during the quarter last year. Total first-quarter sales rose 2.1 percent to $596.4 million.
Covidien, which will release its first-quarter results on April 30, is in the process of moving its headquarters to Ireland, although its U.S. headquarters will remain in Mansfield.
Covidien Ltd. (NYSE, BSX: COV) – formerly Tyco Healthcare – is a leading manufacturer of health care devices and supplies for the global market. Based in Mansfield, Mass., with its official headquarters in Bermuda, it posted 2008 revenue of nearly $10 billion and has more than 41,000 employees in 59 nations around the world. For more information, visit www.covidien.com.
Davol Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of C.R. Bard Inc., is a developer and marketer of surgical irrigation systems and other products for surgical fixation and soft-tissue repair and is the market leader in products for hernia repair. The company was founded in Providence in 1874 and acquired by C.R. Bard in 1980. Additional information is available at www.davol.com.
C.R. Bard is a multinational developer, manufacturer and marketer of medical products for vascular, urological, oncological and surgical specialty care. Additional information is available at www.crbard.com.
