NuVasive files alleged poaching, infringement suits against Alphatec

NuVasive Inc. (NSDQ:NUVA) has filed a suit against Alphatec (NSDQ:ATEC) claiming the company hired on executives, including former COO and prez Pat Miles, with knowledge of its XLIF lateral interbody fusion procedures in an attempt to recreate the technology for its own products. In its infringement suit, submitted this week to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California, San Diego-based NuVasive claims it created the XLIF method for fusing vertebral disks to reduce nerve damage and that Alphatec’s recently released devices, the Battalion lateral system, infringe on their products. NuVasive claims that Alphatec showed interest in being acquired by NuVasive as early as January 2016, but interest was not returned. Then COO and prez Miles, who would later join Alphatec as exec chair, was noted in the court documents for turning down the opportunity to acquire Alphatec, saying it was a “waste of time as far as I am concerned.” During his time at NuVasive, Miles is credited in inventing and creating multiple aspects of the XLIF procedure, and is named as the inventor on “at least 50 issued utility patents related to NuVasive’s XLIF procedure and systems,” according to court documents. After divesting itself of its Globus Medical holdings in September 2016, NuVasive claims that Alphatec began to “make changes to its leadership team targeting NuVasive employees, inventors and upper level management,” according to court d...
Source: Mass Device - Category: Medical Devices Authors: Tags: Legal News Patent Infringement Alphatec Nuvasive Source Type: news