Johnson & Johnson, which is facing more than 10,000 lawsuits over its recall ASR hip systems manufactured by its DePuy Orthopedic Unit, is bargaining for a possible settlement with patients over more than $2 billion in payoff, legal experts say. The bumper-to-bumper lawsuits began after patients announced that they were suffering from the defective implants and seeking compensatory damages. A DePuy director gave an internal report indicating nearly 40 percent ASR failure rate.
Considered the world’s biggest seller of health-care products, Johnson & Johnson is willing to pay more than $200,000 per case -- in deals that may reach more than $2 billion if most plaintiffs accept the terms. However, lawyers for hip recipients have been declining the offer as being too low.
In 2010, Johnson & Johnson recalled 93,000 all-metal hips worldwide, including 37,000 in the United States, saying more than 12 percent failed within five years. Patients who sued contend that they suffer pain and are immobilized by joint dislocations, infections and bone fractures. They alleged metal debris from the hips causes tissue death around the joints.
The settlement talks probably might not end until after the first trials of the lawsuits begin, starting next week, with more set for next month and May.
According to John M. Fitzpatrick, a defense lawyer in Denver, Johnson and Johnson can not afford to defend these lawsuits case by case and it needs to shut down. The only way they can do that is through a global settlement. Plaintiff’s lawyers know that. That’s why everybody has to push to see what they can get.
The company is currently facing 10,100 lawsuits over the hips through September, according to the November filing. Most pretrial collection of evidence has been consolidated in federal courts in Toledo, Ohio, where 7,240 cases are pending, and California State Court in San Francisco, where more than 2,000 cases are filled.
Three of these cases set go on trial in the next few months may offer lawyers guidance on potential liability and damages. First case that went on trial was Loren Kransky's, a retired prison guard which has undergone a ASR XL hip implant in 2007.
Kransky accused DePuy Orthopeadics for endangering his life with the implant which may possibly poisoned him due to the presence of metallosis. Toxic metal is produced when debris from the metal ball sliding against the metal cup caused metal ions to enter Kranky’s bloodstream. One of his doctors said the poison might kill him if no replacement surgery is performed in due time.
Johnson & Johnson is considered among the world’s biggest seller of health-care products which has caused DePuy ASR problems which is being recalled in 2010.
URL REFERENCES:
Bloomberg.com/news/2013-01-25/j-j-failed-to-warn-of-hip-implants-s-risks-jurors-told-1-,html
Bloomberg.com/news/2013-01-18/j-j-said-to-offer-implant-pact-that-may-reach-2-billion.html
