J&J To Pay More Than $400 M To Resolve Hip Device Suits

J&J To Pay More Than $400 M To Resolve Hip Device Suits

Introduction

Johnson & Johnson recently agreed to pay more than $400 million to settle some product liability cases concerning Pinnacle hip-replacement devices. The officials indicated an average of about $125,000 per case to resolve about 3,300 lawsuits pending against the company over design defects in the Pinnacle hip system.

The settlement would resolve a large chunk of cases from the hip implant litigation which involves claims from several patients who were affected by the metal poisoning from the defective hip implants which were taken off the market in 2013. The remaining cases would be settled before a trial which is underway on January 14, 2019, in Dallas. The Pinnacle hip lawsuits are consolidated before U.S. District Judge Ed Kinkeade since 2011 (MDL 3:11-MD-02244, In Re: DePuy Orthopaedics, Inc., Pinnacle Hip Implant Products Liability Litigation) in the Northern District of Texas.

More than 11,000 lawsuits over ASR and Pinnacle hip implant defects are filed against DePuy. Similar lawsuits are filed against other manufacturers in the U.S. involving defendants Zimmer, Stryker, Biomet, Wright, and Smith & Nephew.