Articles Posted in Mass Torts

In March 2022, Pfizer announced that it was recalling a popular blood pressure medication (Accuretic) after several lots of the drug were found to contain unsafe levels of a known carcinogen called nitrosamine.

At least for now, the recall appears to be related to isolated batches of the drug and Pfizer claims that it has no evidence of “adverse events” related to the contamination. There is still the possibility, however, that this could turn into a much wider problem and lead to a wave of product liability litigation.

In this post, we will review the details of the recall and assess the likelihood of any mass tort litigation (and we have a new 2023 update at the bottom).

Significant or prolonged exposure to formaldehyde has been linked to a number of adverse health conditions and recent evidence has shown that it can increase the risk of cancer. In recent years, dangerously high levels of formaldehyde have been discovered in various consumer products which has prompted product liability lawsuits against companies like Lumber Liquidators and Johnson & Johnson. In this post, we will look at formaldehyde product liability lawsuits and their settlement value.

Formaldehyde Poisoning

Formaldehyde poisoning is a disorder caused by chronic exposure and inhalation of formaldehyde fumes (usually with occupational exposure).  Formaldehyde is a colorless chemical. However, it produces a strong, suffocating smell. Formaldehyde is commonly found in household products and materials used to make cabinets, furniture, and walls. Many people become exposed to the chemical through tools and equipment cleaned with it.

Surgimesh is a new type of hernia mesh implant made from non-woven polypropylene microfibers. The use of individual fibers of polypropylene was intended to make the Surgimesh smaller than other hernia mesh products and less prone to biocompatibility problems and other post-surgery complications. The design of the Surgimesh is therefore distinct from the design of many other hernia mesh devices that have generated thousands of product liability lawsuits in recent years (e.g., Ethicon Physiomesh, Atrium C-Qur, etc.).

A recently filed product liability lawsuit in New Mexico alleges that the Surgimesh has the same dangerous design flaws as the other polypropylene hernia mesh implants. This new Surgimesh lawsuit could potentially be the first of many and open a new front in the hernia mesh mass tort ligation.

About Surgimesh

New research has revealed that cow-milk infant formulas can increase the risk of a deadly neonatal condition called necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) in premature infants.

This has prompted a growing number of lawsuits against the manufacturers of infant formulas Similac (Abbott Laboratories) and Enfamil (Mead Johnson) by parents of premature infants who were fed with formula and developed NEC. The lawsuits allege that Abbott and Mead negligently failed to warn parents and doctors about the NEC risk their products posed for preemies.

There are currently around 60 NEC infant formula lawsuits pending in both state and federal courts around the country, but hundreds and possibly thousands more are expected to be filed in the near future. This has prompted both Abbott and Mead to request that all NEC lawsuits in federal courts be consolidated into a new MDL. In this post, we will look at the MDL requests and speculate on the most likely venue and what it might mean for the NEC litigation moving forward.

Knee replacement and knee implant lawsuits allege that devices loosened or did not last as long as they should.  Zimmer faced over 15,000 Biomet lawsuits over its NexGen implant. DePuy Synthes Attune Knee implant lawsuits were also a big thing.  Now Exactech recall lawsuits will be getting filed in massive numbers in 2022 after a big recall.

There have been a lot of questions about hip and knee replacements in recent years. DePuy, Exactech, Stryker, and Zimmer have had – to put it mildly – concerns raised about their products. These companies would argue that the problems are mostly with patients who are having bad outcomes and blaming the insurance companies.

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The case of Crawford v. Abbott Laboratories, Inc. is one of the most recent examples of an NEC infant formula lawsuit. The plaintiff, Candace Crawford, brought the case on behalf of her deceased infant ZaRiyah Crawford. The Complaint was filed against both Abbott Laboratories, Inc. and Mead Johnson Nutrition in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

Baby ZaRiyah was born prematurely (34 weeks gestation age) at North Florida Regional Medical Center on December 2, 2019. ZaRiyah had a birthweight of just 3 pounds and 14 ounces, making rapid weight gain very important to her health. After her birth, ZaRiyah was sent to the NICU.

For the first 3 days at the NICU, Baby ZaRiyah was fed with her mother’s pumped breast milk combined with donor human breast milk. After these first 3 days, however, ZaRiyah was fed with a combination of human breast milk supplemented with Enfamil and Similac cow-milk based formulas.

Procter & Gamble issued a recall of 30 dry conditioners and shampoos because these products may contain benzene, a cancer-causing chemical P&G recalled aerosol spray products will familiar names such as Aussie, Pantene, Herbal Essence, and Waterless. dry shampoo products from Old Spice and Hair Food.

The products were made by Proctor & Gamble and distributed nationwide through online sales like Amazon and through traditional retailers.

Is this a big deal or a little deal?  Is the Benzene risk real?  This post talks about the recall and what it means.

Last month, Elizabeth Burch (University of Georgia School of Law) and Margaret Williams (Johns Hopkins) published a paper entitled Perceptions of Justice in Multidistrict Litigation. The paper was based on a survey of 217 women who are plaintiffs in various mass tort MDLs. Based on this survey, the authors conclude that the MDL system for handling mass torts in federal court is deeply flawed and fails to deliver justice to victims.

This paper has been making the rounds in legal academic circles and received some attention from national news outlets like Reuters. In my humble opinion as a lawyer directly involved in the MDL mass tort system, this paper is based on an absurdly flawed survey that is not reflective of most MDL plaintiffs.

Summary of the Survey

hernia mesh lawsuitsTo date, thousands of lawsuits related to defective hernia mesh implants have been filed in courts across the country. These suits claim that defective surgical implant devices were the cause of chronic pain, serious infections, obstructed bowels, perforated abdomen lining, and the development of adhesions. Some plaintiffs’ injuries were severe enough that they needed further surgeries to correct these issues.

An opioid settlement is coming. How much money is in it for you? If you have suffered, it is a fair question. But this is a different kind of opioid settlement.

Thousands of counties, townships, and local jurisdictions across the country are currently suing pharmaceutical companies that manufacture and sell prescription opioid painkillers. The local jurisdictions are seeking money to reimburse them for the billions of dollars they have been forced to spend in response to the opioid abuse epidemic. After months of little or no movement in this matter, reports suggested that a global settlement proposal may finally be in the works.

Opioid manufacturers, distributors, and pharmacies have collectively paid more than $50 billion in settlements. These funds are earmarked for a range of programs and initiatives designed to tackle the opioid crisis, such as:

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