Patent ID: 8146790

Claim:
A surgical instrument, comprising: a handle assembly including a stationary handle, an approximation mechanism, and a firing trigger; a safety mechanism disposed in mechanical cooperation with the handle assembly and including a lever, the lever being movable between a first position where the firing trigger is prevented from being actuated, and a second position where the firing trigger is able to be actuated, the lever being biased toward its first position; an elongated body portion extending distally from the handle assembly; a head portion disposed adjacent a distal end of the elongated body portion and including a first jaw member and a second jaw member, the first jaw member being movable in relation to the second jaw member between spaced and approximated positions; and the approximation mechanism moving the first jaw member in relation to the second jaw member from a spaced position to an approximated position, wherein movement of the first jaw member in relation to the second jaw member from the approximated position towards the spaced position causes the lever to move from the second position to the first position.