Court Finds in Favor of Ivera Medical; Excelsior Medical Request Denied

SAN DIEGO, CA--(Marketwired - Apr 23, 2014) - Ivera Medical, headquartered in San Diego, CA, announced that on April 16^th, 2014 the US Patent and Trade Office (USPTO) denied a request by Excelsior Medical for rehearing on their previously denied request for an inter partes review of a patent in the port protector space. On February 20, 2014, Ivera announced that the USPTO denied Excelsior's petition for inter partes review and declined to institute trial on any of the asserted grounds as to any of the challenged claims of US 7,282,186 (Ex. 1001; "the '186 patent"). See that release here:
http://www.curos.com/us-patent-office-upholds-ivera-medical-patent-excelsior-medical-petition-denied/

The USPTO was thorough in its rejection of this request for rehearing saying, in part, "As noted in our Decision, Petitioner failed to direct the Board to any new evidence establishing a reasonable likelihood of prevailing with respect to obviousness over the combination of Sigler and Briggs." Later in its decision, the USPTO stated that Excelsior "may not use a Request for Rehearing to augment its prior, unsuccessful, arguments."

"We are pleased with the decision of the USPTO to deny their request," said Bob Rogers, CEO of Ivera Medical. "This patent is one part of a broad patent portfolio that secures Ivera's leadership in the port protector marketplace. This is the second time Excelsior has unsuccessfully tried to seek an invalidity ruling on this patent and we look forward to a trial this September."

About Ivera Medical
Ivera Medical Corporation, a certified Minority Business Enterprise (MBE), is focused on the design, development, manufacture, marketing and sale of products that help healthcare providers reduce facility-acquired patient infections. Curos, manufactured in Carlsbad, CA, is the first disinfecting cap to be marketed in the U.S. and has received FDA's 510(k) market clearance. For more information about Curos and Ivera Medical, visit the website at www.curos.com