OrbusNeich Issues Statement on Boston Scientific's Unsuccessful Retaliatory Litigation Efforts in the Netherlands

FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla. and HONG KONG, Dec. 1, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- OrbusNeich Medical, Inc. ("OrbusNeich" or the "Company"), a designer, developer, manufacturer and marketer of innovative medical devices for the treatment of vascular diseases, today issued a statement regarding unsuccessful retaliatory litigation efforts by Boston Scientific Corporation (NYSE: BSX) against OrbusNeich in The Netherlands.  In March 2009, OrbusNeich filed a lawsuit in the United States asserting claims against Boston Scientific for patent infringement, breach of contract and for misappropriation of trade secrets related to the Boston Scientific Liberte and TAXUS Liberte branded stents.  In April 2010, OrbusNeich expanded its lawsuit to include a newly granted patent, the "Stent with Helical Elements."  The suit seeks unspecified monetary damages and injunctive relief in connection with its claims.  Boston Scientific filed its retaliatory lawsuit against OrbusNeich for alleged patent infringement by OrbusNeich' Evolution 2 catheter in the Netherlands in November 2009.  

Following is the Company's statement:

Last month, the District Court of The Hague ruled that Boston Scientific's patent for a "balloon catheter with distal guide wire lumen" had been revoked in the Netherlands for lack of inventive step in a previous decision of the District Court in a case against Medinol in September 2003.  The District Court ruled that Boston Scientific's patent must be considered as being revoked and that no injunction can be granted on the basis of this patent, unless and until the revocation decision by the District Court in the case against Medinol is set aside by the Court of Appeals of The Hague in the appeal proceedings against the revocation decision in that case.  The District Court stayed the proceedings until a final and conclusive decision is rendered in the appeal proceedings against the revocation decision in the Medinol case.  Boston Scientific's claim for a preliminary injunction pending the stay was denied, as the District Court decided that Boston Scientific lacked an urgent interest, as Boston Scientific had already been aware of OrbusNeich' catheter for many years.

We are pleased with the District Court of The Hague's recent decision and we are confident in the Court of Appeals of The Hague reaching the same conclusion should Boston Scientific initiate the appeal.  Considering Boston Scientific's patent wasn't valid when they filed suit, we believe their case is without merit and, consistent with their past business practices, is simply an effort to wear down OrbusNeich by forcing the Company to spend significant time, money and resources in defending the case.  Further, we see this as an attempt to distract the marketplace from OrbusNeich's pending patent infringement and theft of trade secret case against Boston Scientific in the United States. OrbusNeich is committed to fighting Boston Scientific to protect its proprietary technology and to enforce its patent rights.

Regarding our ongoing infringement and theft of trade secret claims against Boston Scientific in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts, we remain confident in our case and look forward to its advancement.  

Additional Background

Additional information on OrbusNeich's patent infringement case against Boston Scientific related to the Boston Scientific Liberte and TAXUS Liberte branded stents, as well as U.S. Patent No. 7,682,384 B2, entitled "Stent with Helical Elements," can be found in the Investors section of OrbusNeich's website at www.orbusneich.com/?id=196.

About OrbusNeich

OrbusNeich is a global company that designs, develops, manufactures and markets innovative medical devices for the treatment of vascular diseases. Current products are the world's first pro-healing stent, the Genous Stent, as well as stents, balloons and guiding catheters marketed under the names of Blazer™, R stent, Scoreflex™, Sapphire™ and Sapphire NC. Development stage products include the Combo™ Bio-engineered Sirolimus Eluting Stent, or Combo Stent, which combines the Genous pro-healing technology for rapid endothelial coverage with an abluminal sirolimus drug elution for the control of neointimal proliferation.

OrbusNeich is headquartered in Hong Kong and has operations in Shenzhen, China; Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; Hoevelaken, The Netherlands; and Tokyo, Japan. OrbusNeich, which has provided medical devices to physicians through its predecessor companies since 1979, supplies products today to interventional cardiologists in more than 60 countries. For more information, visit www.OrbusNeich.com.

SOURCE OrbusNeich Medical, Inc.