We have all heard stories from doctors about some medical device company stealing their idea for a new product. Perhaps, there are real medtech bandits on the prowl, but in the vast majority of cases, it’s more a matter of misconceptions and miscommunication.
Critics will point to Dr. Gary Michelson who settled a patent suit with Medtronic for $1.35 billion (with a ’B’). But, this is an example of the exception that proves the rule. Dr. Michelson is the farthest thing from a naive doctor who presented an idea to a company and was screwed.
In actuality, Medtronic sued Michelson for over $200 million, charging that he was marketing to competitors some of his inventions that were previously licensed to Medtronic. Michelson countersued, charging that Medtronic had failed to develop the inventions he had licensed to the Company, was infringing on his inventions and was therefore depriving him of tens of millions of dollars in royalties. Keep in mind that Medtronic was already paying Dr. Michelson $40 million per year in royalties for licensed ideas. One other small tidbit, Dr. Michelson had over 100 U.S. patents covering his ideas that Medtronic licensed as part of the settlement agreement.
To read the full, original article click on this link: 4 steps to protect medical device intellectual property rights
