Supplement | HBS Case Collection | October 2013 (Revised January 2014)

Fred Khosravi and AccessClosure (B)

by Richard G. Hamermesh and Lauren Barley

Abstract

It was January 2013, and Fred Khosravi, chairman of the board of AccessClosure Inc., wondered what the new year had in store for him and AccessClosure, the company he founded in late 2002. Khosravi was cautiously optimistic—the Mountain View, California-based medical device company had been cash flow positive for seven consecutive quarters with annual revenues over $70 million. Since 2007, it had shipped well over 1.5 million of its vascular closure device (VCD), the Mynx, which was stocked in more than 1,200 catheter labs worldwide. However, a 2008 patent infringement lawsuit filed by St. Jude Medical, the VCD market leader, loomed large. The case was on appeal, and a three-judge panel would hear arguments in March 2013. If AccessClosure lost its appeal, it faced a $27.1 million judgment for patent infringement and a permanent injunction from selling its Mynx family of VCDs, its sole source of revenue.

Keywords: medical devices; vascular closure device; patent litigation; Patenting; Biotechnology Industry; Biomedical Research; biotechnology; biotech; Technological Innovation; Patents; Health Care and Treatment; Biotechnology Industry; United States; California;

Language: English Format: Print 5 pages Purchase

Citation:

Hamermesh, Richard G., and Lauren Barley. "Fred Khosravi and AccessClosure (B)." Harvard Business School Supplement 814-038, October 2013. (Revised January 2014.)

Related Work

  1. Supplement | HBS Case Collection | January 2014

    Fred Khosravi and AccessClosure (C)

    Richard Hamermesh and Lauren Barley

    On September 11, 2013, the three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit denied St. Jude's request to rehear an appeal on the "double patenting" ruling for the '439 patent. Further, it removed the injunction threat that was hanging over the company. The future looked bright for AccessClosure as 2013 drew to a close. The company expected 2014 revenues of more than $100 million with a gross margin of greater than 70%. It was also anticipating FDA approval on a significant product improvement within the next several months.

    Keywords: medical devices; vascular closure device; patent litigation; Patenting; Biotechnology Industry; Biomedical Research; biotechnology; biotech; Technological Innovation; Patents; Health Care and Treatment; Biotechnology Industry; United States;

    Citation:

    Hamermesh, Richard, and Lauren Barley. "Fred Khosravi and AccessClosure (C)." Harvard Business School Supplement 814-074, January 2014.  View Details
    CiteView DetailsPurchase Related

  2. Supplement | HBS Case Collection | October 2013 (Revised January 2014)

    Fred Khosravi and AccessClosure (B)

    Richard G. Hamermesh and Lauren Barley

    It was January 2013, and Fred Khosravi, chairman of the board of AccessClosure Inc., wondered what the new year had in store for him and AccessClosure, the company he founded in late 2002. Khosravi was cautiously optimistic—the Mountain View, California-based medical device company had been cash flow positive for seven consecutive quarters with annual revenues over $70 million. Since 2007, it had shipped well over 1.5 million of its vascular closure device (VCD), the Mynx, which was stocked in more than 1,200 catheter labs worldwide. However, a 2008 patent infringement lawsuit filed by St. Jude Medical, the VCD market leader, loomed large. The case was on appeal, and a three-judge panel would hear arguments in March 2013. If AccessClosure lost its appeal, it faced a $27.1 million judgment for patent infringement and a permanent injunction from selling its Mynx family of VCDs, its sole source of revenue.

    Keywords: medical devices; vascular closure device; patent litigation; Patenting; Biotechnology Industry; Biomedical Research; biotechnology; biotech; Technological Innovation; Patents; Health Care and Treatment; Biotechnology Industry; United States; California;

    Citation:

    Hamermesh, Richard G., and Lauren Barley. "Fred Khosravi and AccessClosure (B)." Harvard Business School Supplement 814-038, October 2013. (Revised January 2014.)  View Details
    CiteView DetailsPurchase Related

About the Author

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Richard G. Hamermesh
Baker Foundation Professor of Management Practice, MBA Class of 1961 Professor of Management Practice, Retired
Entrepreneurial Management

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