Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Court awards NMT $2.25M in patent suit against Cardia

By Mass High Tech

NMT Medical Inc., a medical devices firm, reports it has been awarded $2.25 million in damages from a federal court in its patent infringement lawsuit against a Minnesota company.

Boston-based NMT (Nasdaq: NMTI) said the U.S. District Court of Minnesota ruled in its favor in the case against Burnsville, Minn.-based Cardia Inc. in November 2007. NMT had accused Cardia of infringing on its exclusive patent licensed from the Children’s Medical Center Corp. in Boston with Cardia’s Intrasept device used in heart surgeries.

The recent judgement requires Cardia to pay $2.25 to NMT and the Children’s Medical Center over the next several months and to cease manufacturing, shipping and marketing of the Intrasept device, according to NMT. The medical devices company filed the original lawsuit in September 2004.

NMT, which makes devices designed to help cardiologists conduct minimally invasive heart surgeries, reported a 2007 net loss of $9.1 million on revenue of $26.8 million. The firm employs 118 workers.