Medtronic loses $30 million insulin pump suit against Nova Biomedical

September 15, 2009 by MassDevice staff

The Minneapolis-based devices giant had sued to stop Waltham, Mass.-based Nova from selling wireless insulin meters and test strips compatible with Medtronic MiniMed's insulin pumps.

Medtronic Inc. lost a $30 million lawsuit against Nova Biomedical Corp., in which the Minneapolis-based devices giant accused Nova of stealing wireless communications technology for a blood glucose meter, according to news reports.

A jury in the U.S. District Court for Central California cleared Nova of accusations that it improperly used technology acquired from its former partner. Waltham, Mass.-based Nova makes test strips and a blood glucose meter that wirelessly transmits results to MiniMed's insulin pump.

But after the companies severed an agreement that had Nova making Medtronic's Paradigm Link meters in 2007, Nova brought out a competing device, the Nova Max Link, which is compatible with the MiniMed pump. Medtronic began distributing its pumps with meters made by Johnson & Johnson division LifeScan.

Bradford Badke, Nova's lead counsel, told The AM Law Daily website that the case hinged on whether the jury believed Medtronic's assertion that the technology was a trade secret.

"[Medtronic's lawyers] said that the technology incorporated in Nova's meter was trade secret communication technology that only they had the right to use," Badke told the website. "The testimony of our experts demonstrated that the information Medtronic said was secret was not, because it was in a publicly available product and anyone could ascertain it from looking at the product."