Last week, Johnson and Johnson settled a bellweather case that was scheduled to commence on October 15, 2013 in California. Plaintiff in that action claimed that his injuries were allegedly caused by the company’s ASR metal-on-metal hip implants. The case is Ottman v. Johnson & Johnson, No. CGC-12-517391, in California Superior Court. The terms of the settlement are confidential.
Another bellweather trial involving the company’s hip implants is scheduled to take place in early 2014 in Los Angeles.
Johnson & Johnson and its subsidiary DePuy Othropaedics, Inc., face over 11,000 lawsuits across the country in both federal and state courts involving the ASR implants. Most of the cases are pending in a federal multidistrict litigation in the U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio.
In March, a Los Angeles Superior Court jury awarded $8 Million to a plaintiff in Kransky v. DePuy, BC456086, California Superior Court, Los Angeles County. However, in April a jury in Chicago recently found for Johnson & Johnson in Strum v. DePuy, 2011-L-9352, Circuit Court of Cook County.
In light this recent settlement and the recent contradictory jury determinations in Kransky and Strum, the upcoming hip implant cases will be watched closely by device and pharmaceutical manufacturers.
More information is available here.