Mesothelioma Legal Advice

Concerned parties for the DePuy hip recall mass litigation are preparing themselves for a hearing scheduled this November 18. A move to centralize and condense the multiple lawsuits filed against the orthopedic manufacturer will be decided upon by a panel of seven federal judges known as the Judicial Panel. The hearing will take place at the Duke School of law in Durham, North Carolina where both parties await an approval for a Multidistrict Litigation or an MDL.

The ASR XL Acetabular System and ASR Hip Resurfacing System are two of the hip implant devices manufactured by DePuy Orthopaedics. A study done in the United Kingdom showed that there the ASRs have a failure rate, 12 percent specifically, which is more than double the industry average of 5 percent. That signifies that one recipient out of eight would require a revision surgery within 5 years of the first hip replacement. Complaints would involve pain, inflammation and stiffness.

Lawsuits have been filed by non-US citizens in response to the DePuy hip replacement recall. This case has gone global as the DePuy hip implants were also sold in Australia, UK and Ireland. Globally, approximately 93,000 hip devices were recalled. Nationally, hundreds of legal suits have been filed against DePuy.

Once the Panel approves of the MDL, it would determine which federal court the litigation will ensue. The case could take place in the District of New Jersey, the Central District of California, and the Northern District of Illinois, among others. There has been a suggestion that the case would be put under Judge Susan D. Wigenton in the District of new Jersey but DePuy claims it to be unsuitable since Judge Wigenton is also looking over a similar case with Zimmer Holding, Inc. As an alternative, they proposed to move it to the District of Ohio or the Northern District of Indiana, both of which are near to Warsaw, Indiana where their headquarters are located.

Lawyers estimates that the total number of lawsuits against DePuy could reach 4,000 as more ASR recipients turn up. If you are one of those who has had a DePuy ASR implanted, have yourself evaluated by your doctor. He could specify if anything is amiss with your implant. There are a lot of options a hip recall recipient is entitled to take and a hip replacement lawyer can help you discuss them.