Federal Judge Urges C.R. Bard, Transvaginal Mesh Device Maker, to Settle the Thousands of Lawsuits it Currently Faces, Parker Waichman LLP Comments
Port Washington, New York (PRWEB) December 23, 2014 -- Parker Waichman LLP, a national law firm dedicated to protecting the rights of victims injured by defective drugs and medical devices, is commenting on an announcement made by U.S. District Judge Joseph Goodwin in Charleston, West Virginia, at a December 9, 2014 hearing. In a rare move, the federal judge strongly suggested to C.R. Bard Inc. that it settle the thousands of lawsuits it faces over defective vaginal-mesh implants, according to a December 12, 2014 Bloomberg.com report.
According to Judge Goodwin, juries may award billions of dollars in damages associated with these cases, Bloomberg.com indicated. “I can’t imagine a corporation facing potentially billions of dollars in verdicts wouldn’t find it advisable to try to achieve a settlement for a much lesser sum,” he noted, according to a transcript. “I base that billions of dollars business on some of the rather large verdicts that we’ve had.”
Judge Goodwin also pointed out that numerous multi-million-dollar verdicts have been reached against various implant device makers, including C.R. Bard, and this should provide incentive for the device maker to resolve the more than 12,000 cases it faces by 2015, Bloomberg.com noted. The C.R. Bard consolidated cases are In re C.R. Bard Inc. Pelvic Repair System Products Liability Litigation, 10-md-02187, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia (Charleston).
Some recent jury findings include:
• Endo International Plc agreed to pay more than $1.3 billion to resolve most of the more than 30,000 lawsuits brought against its American Medical Systems (AMS) Holdings unit over the Perigee, Apogee, and Elevate mesh implant devices. The consolidated AMS cases are In re American Medical Systems Inc. Pelvic Repair Systems Products Liability Litigation, 12-md-02325, U.S. District Court, Southern District of West Virginia (Charleston).
• Boston Scientific was recently ordered to pay four women $26.7 million in the first federal trial its Pinnacle Pelvic Floor Repair Kit. The case is Amal Eghnayem et al. v. Boston Scientific Corp., case number 1:14-cv-24061, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
• In the second federal trial over injuries allegedly caused by Boston Scientific's Obtryx Transobturator Mid-Urethra Sling System pelvic mesh device, an $18.5 million verdict was reached in November on behalf of four women. The case is Canterbury v. Boston Scientific Corp. (Case No. 2:12-cv-08633) in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia.
• In September, Boston Scientific suffered its first legal loss over pelvic mesh products when a Texas jury ordered the company to pay $73 million to one woman. That case is Salazar v. Lopez, case number DC-1214349, in the District Court for Dallas County, 95th Judicial District of Texas.
• A West Virginia jury ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay $3.27 million to another woman over a vaginal mesh device. The case is Huskey v. Ethicon, 12-cv-05201, U.S. District Court, Southern District of West Virginia (Charleston).
• In August, a federal court jury in West Virginia ordered C.R. Bard to pay a woman $2 million in damages over a transvaginal mesh device. The case is Cisson v. C.R. Bard Inc., 11-cv-00195, U.S. District Court, Southern District of West Virginia (Charleston).
For its part, Parker Waichman LLP has filed a number of lawsuits against vaginal mesh device makers, including:
• Johnson & Johnson (In Re: Ethicon, Inc., Pelvic Repair Systems Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2327
• American Medical Systems (In Re: American Medical Systems, Inc., Pelvic Repair Systems Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2325)
• Boston Scientific (In Re: Boston Scientific Corp., Pelvic Repair Systems Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2326).
“We are pleased with the judge’s suggestion as long as it results in just compensation for these women who have suffered serious injuries,” said Gary Falkowitz, Managing Attorney at Parker Waichman LLP. “We represent numerous women in transvaginal mesh lawsuits and continue to provide free legal consultations to anyone who wants to know more about their legal rights.”
If you or a loved one experienced complications following mesh-related surgery involving transvaginal mesh, pelvic mesh, and vaginal implants for pelvic organ prolapse (POP) or stress urinary incontinence (SUI), please visit the firm's transvaginal mesh injury page at yourlawyer.com. Free case evaluations are also available by calling 1-800-LAW-INFO (1-800-529-4636).
Gary Falkowitz, Parker Waichman LLP, http://yourlawyer.com, +1 (800) 529-4636, [email protected]
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