State Law Claims Against Medtronic are Preempted, Judge Rules

NEW ORLEANS - Common-law claims for negligence and strict liability brought against the manufacturer of an implantable neurostimulation system are preempted by the Medical Device Amendments to the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, a Louisiana federal judge has ruled. Pardo v. Medtronic Inc., No. 10-1562 (E.D. La.).

In a Dec. 15, Judge Ivan L.R. Lemelle of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana relied upon the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Riegel v. Medtronic Inc. (552 U.S. 312 [2008]).

Deborah Pardo had a Medtronic RestoreULTRA Rechargeable Neurostimulation System implanted to relieve pain in her right occipital nerve. …