NEW YORK – Blood collection firm Kurin announced on Thursday that the US District Court for the District of Delaware found that its blood culture collection technology does not infringe one of Magnolia Medical Technologies' patents.
The dispute stems from technology that is intended to reduce the rate of false positive results in tests for blood-borne infections by reducing contamination from a patient's skin. Magnolia developed a method of removing those contaminants by separating the first portion of blood from a sample.
The two claims in US Patent No. 10,039,483 that were under consideration are related to the inlet and outlet ports, fluid reservoir, vent, and seal in the blood collection device. In August, the US Patent and Trademark Office rejected Magnolia Medical's claims due to multiple examples of prior art.
"It is rewarding to receive the Court's determination that Kurin does not infringe the '483 patent and I appreciate the efforts of our team over the last few years," Kurin CEO Bob Rogers said in a statement on Thursday. "From the beginning of this case, we felt confident that we would prevail and that the lawsuit was a desperate move by a competitor who could not compete in the marketplace."
Kurin offers the blood culture collection system Kurin Lock, which received 510(k) clearance from the US Food and Drug Administration in 2019.
The decision announced on Thursday is the latest in a long line of legal battles between Magnolia Medical and Kurin.
In July 2022, a jury in the US District Court for the District of Delaware ruled that Kurin had used Magnolia's Initial Specimen Diversion Device technology without permission and awarded Magnolia $2.1 million in damages. In September 2022, Magnolia Medical filed a motion for permanent injunction against Kurin to stop the firm from selling its own blood collection device.
In 2019, Magnolia Medical alleged that Kurin was infringing on four of its patents for its blood collection device.
In 2018, Kurin sued Magnolia Medical for allegedly making false claims about its Steripath system. Magnolia Medical later countersued, alleging unfair competition and false advertising. In 2020, a federal court ruled in favor of Magnolia Medical in the false advertising suit brought by Kurin.