EOFlow gains upper hand in patent dispute with Insulet over insulin pump

EOFlow, a Korean insulin pump developer, said it has achieved a legal victory in its ongoing patent dispute with Insulet, a U.S. firm.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has overturned an earlier injunction that banned the sale, manufacture, and marketing of EOFlow's insulin pump, the EOPatch, in the U.S. This decision has raised hopes for EOFlow to restart selling the device in the market.

The dispute between EOFlow and Insulet began in early 2023 when Insulet accused EOFlow of infringing on its trade secrets related to its OmniPod product.

This legal battle intensified after Medtronic initiated a due diligence process to acquire EOFlow. Insulet filed a lawsuit claiming that EOFlow's EOPatch violated its intellectual property, leading to a temporary injunction that halted EOFlow's operations in the U.S. and other regions.

In October, the Massachusetts District Court ruled in favor of Insulet, enforcing a preliminary injunction that stopped EOFlow from selling its EOPatch in the U.S.

However, this decision has now been overturned by the federal appeals court, which found that the lower court had abused its discretion in assessing the alleged trade secret misappropriation and the potential for irreparable harm to Insulet.

The appeals court criticized the initial ruling, stating that "irreparable harm must be based on more than unfounded fears and must be grounded in something more than a generalized fear of competition."

The court also questioned the sufficiency of Insulet's claims regarding the protection of its trade secrets, noting that the documentation and design specifications claimed as secrets were not adequately protected.

With the overturning of the injunction, EOFlow is now allowed to resume the sale of its wireless wearable insulin pumps in the U.S.

However, the legal battle is far from over. The case will return to the lower court for further proceedings, extending the legal process. This continuation means that both companies may still face further rounds of litigation.