A Lake Oswego orthodontist is in the crosshairs of a $20 billion medical device company, Align Technologies, which alleged in a federal lawsuit filed on Tuesday that Dischinger Orthodontics is effectively counterfeiting its flagship product, Invisalign braces.
The lawsuit alleges Dischinger lures patients in with promises of Invisalign and then does a “bait-and-switch,” giving them an off-brand competitor.
Bill Dischinger, a well-known figure both among Lake Oswego parents and the broader orthodontia community, says he was shocked to learn yesterday that he was the subject of the $28 million lawsuit. He says he’s done nothing wrong. “We do use Invisalign,” he contends. “No false claims are being made.”
The lawsuit represents a battle between two esteemed brands. One, Invisalign, is a technology born in a Stanford dorm room in 1997 that has gone on to become an international profit machine—built on the back of a massive advertising campaign that has convinced much of the public it’s a better alternative to braces.
The other is the Dischinger family, which runs a popular Lake Oswego orthodontia business founded by Terry Dischinger, the three-time NBA All-Star and former Portland Trailblazer. Terry died last year. His son, Bill, now runs the clinic.
The conflict stems from the fact that Invisalign’s patent on the groundbreaking technology expired in 2017, opening the door to a slew of competitors looking to take a bite out of Align’s nearly $4 billion in annual revenue.