Court OK’s Acumed’s Win in Stryker Patent Dispute

(CN) - The Federal Circuit upheld Acumed's permanent injunction against Stryker Corp. in a patent infringement dispute over a device to heal a broken arm.

Stryker appealed the injunction granted to Acumed, which holds a patent on a proximal humeral nail (PHN), a device inserted lengthwise into the upper arm to heal a broken humerus bone.

Judge Laurie of the federal appeals court in Washington, D.C., ruled that the district court did not abuse its discretion in deciding that Acumed's previous willingness to license the PHN did not mean Stryker was allowed to infringe its patent.

"The court considered the licenses and distinguished them from the circumstances of this case," Laurie wrote.

Laurie also agreed with the district court that the balance of hardships tips in favor of Acumed.

Stryker, the judge wrote, could have used its own non-infringing straight-nail design, rather than using Acumed's curved design.

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