Articles Posted in Berniard Law Firm news

It was recently announced that the pretrial filings for DePuy ASR hip replacement lawsuits have been consolidated to the Northern District of Ohio. The lawsuits have been assigned to the Honorable David A. Katz for supervision during the early stages of the litigation. Judge Katz is based in Toledo, Ohio, and he will be responsible for overseeing discovery efforts and pretrial motions made by DePuy ASR hip implant litigants.

With over 150 federal lawsuits pending against DePuy, it was necessary to consolidate the DePuy ASR hip replacement pretrial actions to just one judicial district in the interests of simplicity and judicial economy. According to the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation, these numerous federal lawsuits all contain common issues of fact and law. Therefore, the pretrial actions only need to be considered in one consolidated court proceeding.

Once the pretrial phases of these lawsuits are completed, the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation will transfer the actions back to the federal court districts they originated from for further litigation in the plaintiffs’ respective home districts.
The consolidation of DePuy hip implant pretrial litigation will streamline the exchange of evidence between the multiple plaintiffs and DePuy. Because some commentators predict that thousands of plaintiffs may end up filing suits against DePuy for complications experienced as a result of receiving a defective DePuy ASR hip implant unit, it is critical that redundancies and duplications of evidence and motions are avoided in the earliest phases. Consolidation to the Northern District of Ohio should facilitate this goal.

DePuy, a division of Johnson & Johnson, announced a nationwide recall of its ASR hip implants in August 2010 after a significant number of patients were forced to endure revision surgery to correct complications suffered from defective ASR units, including metallosis and loss of mobility. As many as 12-13% of patients were adversely affected. Experts estimate that billions of dollars in damages are at stake. Consequently, complex litigation and negotiations are expected in order to justly compensate plaintiffs’ claims for the pain and suffering they’ve experienced. And because product liability litigation is only just beginning against DePuy, the recent consolidation action will set the foundation for future litigants and forthcoming litigation.

This blog will continue to keep you posted on legal developments surrounding the DePuy hip implant recall as they materialize.

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Lead attorney Jeffrey Berniard recently educated fellow lawyers on the complexities of litigation concerning the ASR DePuy hip implant replacement recall. Having been an active part of Continuing Legal Education (CLE), Mr. Berniard was selected to teach the DePuy matter due to his involvement in the ongoing litigation over the matter as well as his experience in product defect representation. Through the CLE program, attorneys are able to continue to develop understanding for new issues and few may have a bigger impact than this hip replacement matter.

Recalled some years after DePuy and parent company Johnson & Johnson were aware of an unacceptable failure rate, the ASR hip unit was utilized in the replacement surgery of over 80,000 people. The prosthetic, which normally would last for over a decade, is now failing for far too many in as short as three years. Upwards of 1 in 8 patients faced problems with the item, forcing DePuy’s hand over time and leading to the eventual recall. Resulting in an unwelcome revision surgery that required additional hospital time and an obvious second procedure, this failed implant system has caused nothing but problems for individuals of varying age that trusted the item would be an element of progress after their own hip had failed.

From a liability standpoint, it remains unclear how the courts will address DePuy’s actions. The company itself has limited its responsibility to those who received the implant to a replacement and those limited costs related to swapping their defective product for a functional item. However, the sheer amount of discomfort, pain and problems suffered by those with the item makes such a response seem not only disheartening but frustrating. The faulty implant has been tied to a variety of ailments, including general pain and discomfort, limited mobility, health problems and continued hip failure. That the company would only agree to cover expenses related to rectifying their faulty product is telling and a great illustration of why contacting a legal expert is necessary for recipients.

As part of our firm’s efforts to educate the public at large about their legal rights in matters, lead attorney Jeffrey Berniard will be informing his peers about the Johnson & Johnson/DePuy ASR hip implant replacement legal issue. Having already been an active part of CLE (Continuing Legal Education) courses, as well as serving as an educator to law students on legal matters, Jeffrey Berniard is transferring his experience with product defect and company liability matters to the classroom.

Over the years, post-Katrina, the Berniard Law Firm has been an active part of helping Louisiana and other Gulf Coast residents recover in the wake of storm damage and insurance company delays. What’s more, our firm has actively pursued legal accountability against refineries in Louisiana and elsewhere for chemical leaks in Chalmette and Hahnville. In the wake of the British Petroleum (BP) oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, Jeffrey Berniard and his firm immediately began representing families for their losses as well as assisting in the difficult and confusing claims process that ensued once the Gulf Coast Claims Facility (GCCF) took over the payment process.

For more information about your legal rights in the DePuy issue, or other matters relating to injuries, personal or property, contact our offices today. In a variety of matters, your legal rights can be limited by how long you take to consult an attorney to discuss what options are available to you. By speaking with Jeffrey Berniard, you will not only have the ability to speak with a rising attorney with significant peer respect and extensive experience in his fields, you will also be limiting the potential of losing the financial award you deserve.