Compensation and Litigation for Faulty Hip Replacements

Compensation and Litigation for Faulty Hip Replacements

Filing a Lawsuit Over Injuries Caused by Bad Hip Replacements

People who experience falls, accidents, or other forms of injuries that affect the hip commonly receive hip replacements. Unfortunately, after the hip replacement surgery, problems may arise from infections, metal poisoning from defective or poorly tested artificial hips, or a dislocated or loose replacement. If you have experienced any of these effects after your hip replacement, read on to learn your legal remedies and whom you can hold responsible for your continued pain and suffering. In recent years, thousands of people who experienced financial and health complications have filed lawsuits against the manufacturers of faulty hip replacements. Often patients need revision surgery or a new prosthetic to fix the faulty hip replacement. To seek compensation for a faulty hip replacement that you paid for, and for the pain and suffering it caused, contact an experienced hip replacement attorney. An experienced law firm will understand the fear, anxiety, pain, and suffering you've endured, and can help you receive the compensation you may deserve.

The Rise of Litigation From Faulty Hip Replacements

Lawsuits argue that some hip replacement manufacturers poorly tested or poorly made some models, or that complications arose after receiving the implants. Many issues were serious enough to require revision or replacement surgery. The injuries claimed in the lawsuits include:

1. Device dislocation
2. Device loosening
3. Metal poisoning (metallosis)
4. Pain
5. Required revision surgery

An implant recall offers a direct path to filing a lawsuit with the guidance of an experienced hip replacement law firm. Even after a recall, patients may never find out that they have received a faulty implant unless a complication arises. Even without a recall, if you have experienced complications from your replacement, you may pursue remedies. The three major companies that dominate the hip replacement market are DePuy Synthes (Johnson & Johnson), Stryker, and Smith & Nephew. Anyone who has received a hip replacement must know which products were recalled.

Stryker Hip Implant Litigation

If you received any Stryker hip implant and are experiencing complications, you should immediately discuss whether or not you should receive a revision surgery with your surgeon. You should also contact a law firm that can help you receive compensation for such surgery and any pain and suffering you may have experienced before or after a revision. Stryker is not new to paying settlements for their defective models. In April 2012, Stryker pulled its AGB II model from the market. The company issued the recall due to corrosion and fretting and also recalled several Stryker LFIT Anatomic V40 femoral heads models. In 2014, the company paid more than nearly $1.2 billion to settle Rejuvenate and ABG II hip replacement lawsuits, averaging around $300,000 per claimant. Again in 2018, Stryker paid a confidential settlement for victims with the LFIT Anatomic V40 femoral heads models. As of August 2019, nearly 2,000 hip replacement lawsuits against Stryker were filed in both state and federal courts. While at least six models were named in the lawsuits, three—Rejuvenate, ABG II, and LFIT Anatomic CoCr V40 femoral heads—were included in federal mass litigation. Most recently, people who have experienced complications from the Stryker Tritanium Acetabular Shell hip implants have filed lawsuits. These implants were specifically designed to replace the hip socket and encourage bone growth by fusing to the recipient's own bones. Unfortunately, recipients reported that the hip implant loosened after surgery, which caused immense pain. The only solution is to have more surgery. If you received the Tritainum Acetabular Shell hip implant within the last five years and have experienced pain, speak to your doctor and contact a law firm that can help you receive the compensation you deserve. A hip replacement surgery should alleviate your pain from an injury, fall, or accident. It should last for years, if not decades. When it doesn't due to faulty design, you could recover compensation for the medical and therapy bills, pain and suffering, lost wages, and other expenses related to the initial faulty hip replacement and subsequent revisions. Contact us to learn more about what you may recover if you received a faulty Stryker hip replacement.

DePuy Hip Replacement Litigation

DePuy, operating as a division of Johnson & Johnson, is another major hip replacement manufacturer. DePuy has had thousands of lawsuits filed against it since 2005. Specifically, three hip replacement devices—the ASR XL Acetabular System total hip replacement, the Pinnacle Hip Replacement System, and the ASR Hip Replacement Surfacing system—have caused immense injury and pain to recipients of the implants. These lawsuits claim that the DePuy ASR (Articular Surface Replacements) and Pinnacle devices caused major complications that often require further surgeries. In 2013, DePuy settled nearly 8,000 ASR hip lawsuits by agreeing to pay $4 billion. In May 2019, DePuy agreed to pay another settlement equaling nearly $1 billion to resolve close to 6,000 Pinnacle cases. According to the U.S. District Court of the Northern District of Texas, the following actual and punitive damages were awarded in the DePuy Pinnacle hip trials:

DATE OF VERDICT	ACTUAL DAMAGES	PUNITIVE DAMAGES	TOTAL JURY AWARD	REDUCED AWARD
March 2016	$142 million	$360 million	$502 million	$151 million (later tossed out)
December 2016	$30 million	$1.01 billion	$1.04 billion	$543 million
November 2017	$78 million	$168 million	$247 million	$245 million

Smith & Nephew Litigation

In 2012, Smith & Nephew recalled 4,000 R3 Acetabular Hip Systems in the United States once complications and failures were reported. In 2016, 2,000 Modular SMF and Modular Redapt Revision Femoral Hip Systems were recalled as well. Since 2015, Smith & Nephew has settled many of the lawsuits filed against it in two major settlements. However, in April 2017, 28 lawsuits combined into a multi-district litigation (MDL) case, and by April 2019 the MDL grew to 609 lawsuits. While the settlement amount was undisclosed, Smith & Nephew set aside $203 million to cover legal costs related to metal-on-metal hip implant lawsuits.

How Were These Lawsuits Filed?

The lawsuits filed for faulty hip implants are generally consolidated into MDL lawsuits. Specifically, the MDL involving nearly 8,000 lawsuits filed over the DePuy ASR devices took place in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. For the Pinnacle devices, the lawsuits were consolidated into MDL in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas. For the Smith & Nephew lawsuits, the MDL was established in Baltimore, Maryland. MDLs speed up a legal process that involves many people, helping deliver compensation to claimants who have experienced similar injuries. The DePuy Pinnacle MDL centered on injuries suffered by patients who received metal-on-metal hip replacements. This system involves both a metal hip socket and metal top of the thighbone replacement. When the parts rub against each other, they release metal debris into the body, producing high levels of cobalt and chromium ions in the blood. Thousands of cases remain open, and the outcome in June 2020 of a $502 million verdict will likely affect future decisions. For the Stryker recalls and MDLs, 2,300 cases were consolidated into an MDL in the U.S. District Court of Minnesota (MDL 13-2441) and 2,600 cases were filed in New Jersey in the Bergen County Court (MCL 296). You can still join the Stryker Modular Hip Settlement compensation programs that Stryker has agreed to in the New Jersey multicounty and multidistrict litigations. These programs allow patients who received ABG II Modular-Neck hip stems and Rejuvenate Modular-Neck hip stems to receive compensation. Enrollment began on September 30, 2020 so reach out to a law firm now that can help you receive the compensation you deserve.

How Much Compensation Can I Receive for a Faulty Hip Implant?

In the Stryker Rejuvenate and ABG II MDL, the base compensation for each plaintiff who agreed to a settlement was $300,000. However, you may recover more based on the amount of medical bills due to the initial surgery, revision surgery, rehabilitation, medicine, and pain and suffering you may have endured from the faulty hip replacement. While the pain and suffering is often difficult to calculate, an experienced law firm can help you demonstrate these damages and receive every penny you deserve. In the DePuy Pinnacle MDL, court filings indicated that at least 3,300 of the 10,000 hip replacement lawsuits were settled or were in the process of settling. The settlement amount was undisclosed, but Bloomberg cited unnamed sources who indicated that the average settlement amount was $125,000.

How Can You File?

If you or a loved one has experienced complications, pain, suffering, infection, or other issues related to a faulty hip replacement, you may receive compensation. Our firm is currently filing lawsuits for our clients who have received the following hip replacement devices, although if you experience issues with any hip implant, please contact our firm for a free consultation:

1. Stryker Rejuvenate Modular Neck
2. Stryker ABG II Modular Neck
3. Stryker Accolade, Citation, Meridian, Exeter, Reliance, Definition and Restoration Stem cases with V40 Cobalt Chromium modular heads
4. Wright Medical Conserve Cup Metal on Metal
5. Wright Medical Profemur Stem
6. DePuy ASR
7. DePuy Pinnacle Metal on Metal with modular heads greater than 36 mm
8. Zimmer M/L Taper Kinectiv Stem
9. Zimmer Durom Cup with modular heads greater than 36 mm

10. 

    Zimmer Versys CoCr Head
11. Biomet M2A 38 mm / Magnum
12. DJO / Encore Metal on Metal
13. Omnilife Apex Arc
14. Smith & Nephew BHR R3 Metal on Metal cup
15. Smith & Nephew SMF stem

Get the right law firm to represent you and protect your rights. This time is confusing and overwhelming, and an attorney can help you file all of the right documents, gather all evidence necessary, and advocate to get you the compensation you deserve. Contact a lawyer to evaluate your circumstances and the facts of your case as soon as possible, because the statute of limitations sets a deadline in your case by which you must take action if you want to seek compensation.

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Dolman Law Group Accident Injury Lawyers, PA 800 N Belcher Rd Clearwater, FL 33765 (727) 451-6900 https://www.dolmanlaw.com/hip-replacement-lawyers/