Mentor Corp. Fund Settles Breast-Implant Litigation

Mentor Corp. said Wednesday that it has reached an agreement in principle to settle all outstanding breast-implant litigation.

“The company denies any wrongdoing or legal liability of any kind,” Chairman Christopher Conway said in a statement. “We have settled in order to avoid the costs and risks associated with this type of litigation.”

Mentor, a producer of medical devices, said the agreement will establish a fund of $24 million, with payments to be made over the next four years.

It said it expects a portion of the settlement to be paid by its insurance carriers.

As a result of the settlement, Mentor expects to incur a charge in the range of $1.15 to $1.30 a share in its fiscal fourth quarter ended March 31.

Under the agreement with the Federal Multi-District Litigation Plaintiffs Steering Committee, Mentor also agreed to cease marketing silicone-gel breast implants within 18 months after closing the settlement.

The company is now the only manufacturer of silicone breast implants remaining in the United States.

The plaintiffs’ committee said Mentor is the first breast-implant manufacturer to reach an agreement with the committee.

Margaret Moses Branch, a spokeswoman for the committee, said women with Mentor silicone-gel implants will still have a claim against Dow Corning, because Dow Corning supplied Mentor with the gel used in implants.

Dow Corning is a joint venture between Dow Chemical and Corning Inc.