Positive Results of 2013 Vaginal Mesh Trials May Favor Other Claimants, Experts Say

One may view that the year 2013, which is coming to a close, was generally favorable to the plaintiffs as far as the vaginal mesh lawsuits that went into trial are concerned. The juries in different courts that heard these lawsuits came up with decisions that favor the complainants, while ordering the defendants to pay damages.

The two vaginal mesh lawsuits resolved by the courts for the year 2013 were the following:

Linda Gross’ Vaginal Mesh Lawsuit

The jury handed down in February this year a decision finding Ethcion, a business unit of Johnson & Johnson, liable for the injuries sustained by Linda Gross, after a month of hearing testimonies from different experts. This lawsuit which was heard before the court of Judge Carol Higbee of the Superior Court of New Jersey was the first of the thousands of pending vaginal mesh claims under his jurisdiction.

The claimant from South Dakota was implanted with a GYNECARE PROLIFT to repair her pelvic organ prolapse (POP) and started experiencing severe complications after only a few years. Even with the 18 surgeries she has undergone, including the very complicated mesh removal procedures, she is still far from recovery. She continues to suffer chronic pain and has to maintain multiple medications to ease the pain and discomfort.

Linda Gross was awarded a total of $11.1 million representing compensatory damages of $3.35 million and punitive damages of $7.76 million. Ethicon failed to properly warn of the risks associated with the transvaginal mesh device and that it also made fraudulent misrepresentations to the plaintiff, according to the jury in its verdict.

Donna Cisson’s Vaginal Mesh Lawsuit

With a decision finding the defendant liable for the injuries suffered by the plaintiff, the vaginal mesh lawsuit of Donna Cisson against C.R. Bard was concluded in the middle of August this year. Included in the multidistrict litigation (MDL) under the US District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia, this lawsuit was actually the first of four bellwether cases involving C.R. Bard.

A Bard Avaulta Plus Posterior BioSynthetic Support System was implanted on Miss Cisson in 2009 for the treatment of her pelvic organ prolapse. Severe complications were experienced by the plaintiff after a few years that resulted to mental and physical pain, permanent disability, and substantial deformity.

Donna Cisson, according to the jurors, was able to prove her claims that the mesh implanted in her was defective in design and that the defendant failed to provide adequate warning of the risks involved. The claimant, as a result, was awarded compensatory damages of $250,000 and punitive damages amounting to $1.75 million.

Impact of Vaginal Mesh Trials

More than two lawsuits would have gone into trial for the year 2013 but the other cases did not push through for one reason or another. Other bellwether cases were postponed and one vaginal mesh complaint was dismissed at the request of the claimant. Two other cases which were supposed to start trial were cancelled after C.R. Bard decided to settle the claims out of court.

Should these developments be any indication, there is much for the plaintiffs in the thousands of pending vaginal mesh lawsuits to be optimistic about. Legal observers have expressed the view that because of these positive decisions, that instead of proceeding with the trials, the numerous defendants may be persuaded to settle pending claims.

References:

bloomberg.com/news/2013-02-28/j-j-owes-7-76-million-in-punitives-in-vaginal-mesh-case.html

meshmedicaldevicenewsdesk.com/latest-in-the-litigation-concerning-mesh-and-medical-devices