A recent order by Judge Richard Kramer of the California Superior Court in San Francisco has expanded the type of metal-on-metal implant cases that may be filed in state court. Johnson & Johnson is facing thousands of lawsuits nationwide as a result of its subsidiary DePuy Orthopaedic’s ASR XL Acetabular System hip implants. It has been estimated that 1 out of every 8 DePuy ASR hip implants will fail prematurely and require corrective surgery within 5 years of implantation. A typical hip implant usually lasts about 15 years. This ruling by Judge Kramer opens the door for many additional claims to proceed against DePuy involving their Pinnacle Acetabular Cup System hip devices.
A large number of cases that have been filed against Johnson & Johnson and DePuy Orthopaedic for their ASR hip implant devices have been consolidated in a multi-district litigation (MDL) in Texas. MDLs are centralized locations for all federal cases involving a particular form of litigation, such as a drug or medical device, regardless of the jurisdiction in which any individual case was originally filed. The purpose is to make litigation easier for all parties, especially plaintiffs who can pool their resources and cooperate when suing large corporations. This MDL has already included hundreds of DePuy Pinnacle cases in the litigation.
If you or a loved one has had hip replacement surgery and experienced complications or have had to undergo revision surgery as a result of a faulty DePuy ASR or Pinnacle hip implant device, please contact Lopez McHugh for a free case evaluation.
