Medtronic has successfully overturned a 2023 jury verdict that had ordered the company to pay $106.5 million to Colibri Heart Valve over alleged patent infringement. The ruling was reversed by a federal appeals court, siding with Medtronic’s argument of noninfringement.
Colibri first filed suit in 2019, alleging that Medtronic’s CoreValve devices—including Evolut R, Evolut Pro, and Evolut Pro+—infringed on two of its patents. A jury later sided with Colibri, finding Medtronic liable for infringing U.S. Patent No. 8,900,294. Medtronic immediately appealed.
This week, the appeals court concluded that Medtronic was entitled to judgment as a matter of law, citing prosecution history estoppel. The panel found that Colibri’s prior cancellation of a claim regarding partial valve deployment barred use of the doctrine of equivalents, nullifying the original decision.
The judgment ends a multi-year dispute over a now-expired patent, with no further liability for Medtronic.
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