Covidien Surgical Stapler Case Survives Dismissal Motion in Mass. Federal Court

BOSTON — A Massachusetts federal judge has allowed claims for failure to warn and misrepresentation to proceed in a Covidien surgical stapler case, finding the plaintiffs adequately alleged the manufacturer defendants underreported adverse events by misusing the FDA’s Alternative Summary Reporting (ASR) Program.

In a Nov. 21 order, Judge Denise Casper of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts also refused to dismiss plaintiff’s Mass. Gen. L. c. 93A claim, ruling they established a connection between their injuries and the state.

Brian Corrigan underwent a laparoscopic sigmoidectomy with end-to-end anastomosis, laparoscopic mobilization of splenic flexure and percutaneous liver …