Strict Liability, Breach of Warranty Claims Preempted, Texas Federal Judge Rules in Medtronic Pain Pump Action

GAVELSTON, Texas — Claims asserted against Medtronic Inc. in a pain pump action are preempted because they seek to impose state law requirements that are “different from, or in addition to” those imposed by federal law, a Texas federal judge has ruled.

In a March 22 order, Judge George C. Hanks Jr. of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas dismissed with prejudice the plaintiff’s claims of strict liability, negligence and breach of warranty.

Sometime before October 2013, Ronnie Morgan had a SynchroMed II Pump implanted to address his chronic pain. Morgan was later admitted to the …