MassDevice

The Medical Device Business Journal — Medical Device News & Articles | MassDevice

Home » Stryker, Zimmer Biomet settle poaching spat

Stryker, Zimmer Biomet settle poaching spat

By

Stryker, Zimmer BiometStryker (NYSE:SYK) and Zimmer Biomet (NYSE:ZBH) agreed to bury the hatchet in a lawsuit Stryker brought accusing its orthopedics rival of poaching sales reps.

Kalamazoo, Mich.-based Stryker sued Zimmer Biomet in March in the U.S. District Court for Southern Texas, alleging “concerted and deliberate unfair competition, improper use of Stryker’s confidential and trade secret information, and improper solicitations of Stryker’s customers and employees” in the Houston area.

Zimmer Biomet allegedly enticed a pair of Stryker reps, Andrew Ruggles and Carson Combs, to set up a rival foot & ankle business targeting Stryker customers in breach of their non-compete and non-solicitation agreements, according to the lawsuit. The ex-reps “are now moving the business of those Stryker customers to defendants and utilizing Stryker confidential and trade secret information,” Stryker alleged.

Ruggles quit Stryker in November 2016 and allegedly recruited Combs to follow suit just 4 days later, according to the suit, which asked Judge Gray Miller for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction barring Zimmer Biomet, Ruggles and Combs from further alleged violations, according to court documents.

Zimmer Biomet in May moved to dismiss the case, arguing that although Stryker’s claims are pegged to Ruggles and Combs, it inexplicably failed to name them as defendants. In a June 7 response, Stryker maintained that no law requires them to name the duo, because it’s going after Zimmer Biomet and not them.

Yesterday Judge Gray Miller dismissed the case without prejudice, giving the companies 60 days to finalize the settlement agreement, according to court documents.

“Having been advised that a settlement has been reached between plaintiff and defendant, the court dismisses this case without prejudice to reinstatement of plaintiff’s claims if any party represents to the court within 60 days from the date of this order that the settlement could not be completely documented. The court retains jurisdiction over any settlement agreements,” Miller wrote.

In case you missed it

RSS From Medical Design & Outsourcing

  • Owen Mumford starts work on new production center in U.K.
    Owen Mumford this week announced that it has started building its new production facility in Witney, Oxfordshire in the U.K. The new building is commissioned to align with the Woodstock, England-based company’s sustainability agenda that is in accordance with the latest environmental standards needed for a BREEAM certification. The investment project, which is valued at… […]
  • FDA’s Woodcock reassures about COVID-19 tests, vaccines under Omicron
    Acting FDA Commissioner Dr. Janet Woodcock thinks many COVID-19 tests will continue to work with the new Omicron variant — with information coming soon on vaccine efficacy. In a statement posted yesterday, Woodcock said she thought the agency is well-positioned to work with companies to address the potential impact of viral mutations on COVID-19 tests,… […]
  • Traco Power launches THM 60WI DC-DC converters
    Traco Power today announced it has launched its THM 60WI series of quarter brick DC-DC converters. The Baar, Switzerlad-based company designed the DC-DC converters with ultra-wide input ranges and safety approvals for medical and industrial applications. Traco Power’s THM 60WI series of converters consists of 12 models with 9-75 or 18-75 Vin ranges with single… […]
  • The 10 largest medtech employers of 2021 – and what their employees really think
    Employees of the 10 largest medtech employers are proud of working on life-saving products — with a greater appreciation for diversity and inclusion initiatives. That was one major takeaway as Medical Design & Outsourcing compiled some current and former employee reviews posted on Glassdoor. (Browse the online version of our Big 100 report.) Despite the pride, there was… […]
  • COVID-19 test makers say their products also detect Omicron
    Abbott, BD, Hologic, PerkinElmer, Thermo Fisher and Quidel are reassuring the public that their COVID-19 tests detect the Omicron variant. Discovered last week in South Africa, the new variant has enough mutations that it has raised concerns worldwide — even though it is still unknown for sure whether the mutations cause greater transmissibility or vaccine… […]
  • November 2021 Issue: The Big 100 – Medtech’s 100 Largest Players
      Browse the online version of the Big 100 An even larger medtech supply chain shock looms beyond the pandemic European approval ‘a big deal’ as Medtronic moves forward with Hugo surgical robot How medtech fared in the first waves of the pandemic People move the medtech industry forward The term “supply chain” brings to… […]
  • Could winged microchips monitor for airborne disease?
    Northwestern University engineers have created what they claim are the smallest-ever human-made flying structures — winged microchips that could monitor the air for disease and pollution. Engineering professor John Rogers and his team at Northwestern drew on inspiration from nature to create the microchips, which are the size of a grain of sand. The chips… […]
  • Smith+Nephew expands reach of its Cori handheld robotic system
    A year after Smith+Nephew (NYSE:SNN) launched its Cori handheld robotic system in the U.S.,  the ortho surgery system has launched globally. The British medtech giant has expanded Cori’s reach to Europe, Australia and New Zealand, India, and Canada (just announced today). The company yesterday said the system was now available for use in the U.K.’s National Health… […]
  • Elizabeth Holmes reportedly expresses remorse in criminal fraud trial
    Elizabeth Holmes reportedly revealed some regret over her handling of business as the ex-Theranos CEO took the stand again in a criminal fraud trial. Taking the stand yesterday for the third day of testimony in federal court in San Jose, California, Holmes was said to have shown remorse while still shifting some of the blame… […]
  • Supply chain, manufacturing issues slow Medtronic’s Hugo launch, ramp-up expected next fiscal year
    Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) Chair & CEO Geoff Martha confirmed that the launch of the Hugo surgical robot platform is off-schedule. Hugo received CE mark approval last month. The company is gearing up to conduct its FDA investigational device exemption (IDE) clinical trials in the U.S., with more on its stateside efforts still to come, Medtronic’s surgical robotics… […]
  • Minnetronix Medical honored in Minnesota for its MindsEye Expandable Port
    Minnetronix Medical (St. Paul, Minn.) received an award from the Minnesota Technology Association that highlights its MindsEye Expandable Port for minimally invasive deep brain access. The company won the association’s TEKNE award for best medical technology and devices. “Given Minnesota is a global epicenter for the medical device industry, this award is quite meaningful to Minnetronix… […]