Medtronic, Inc. Implantable Defibrillator Product Liability Litigation

The case is part of ongoing litigation seeking damages against Medtronic because the batteries in some of its defibrillators were faulty, leading to a recall of nearly 87,000 units.

Medtronic Inc., agreed to pay $75 million in order to settle lawsuits claiming the company concealed defects in its defibrillators, Bloomberg News reported on July 20, 2007. The settlement aims to resolve approximately 2,000 claims that said the batteries in Medtronic’s implantable defibrillators were defective.

Bloomberg’s sources said the Medtronic defibrillator settlement is contingent that 90 percent of the claims with the $75 million accord. Medtronic gave itself the right to withdraw from the settlement if less than 90 percent of the claimants sign.

The potential Medtronic settlement comes after Medtronic recalled some 87,000 defibrillators. The recalled Medtronic devices cost about $30,000 each.

And while some lawyers representing plaintiffs in the suits declined to comment on the potential settlement, some say they will move on with litigation against Medtronic.

“All I can say is that we are continuing to press our cases and hope to be able to bring some of them to trial in 2008,” one California-based lawyer representing 80 clients, said.