The court running the various Mirena lawsuits has announced a case management conference, scheduled for Jan. 20, 2015. Meetings like this could have a major impact on the thousands of Mirena lawsuits working their way through the legal system.

Mirena lawsuits hinge on the allegation that Bayer’s Mirena IUD is inherently dangerous, and can cause serious Mirena complications. The Mirena IUD is a type of birth control implant designed to be inserted into the uterus by a physician. Once in place, the Mirena IUD can remain in the uterus for up to five years, blocking pregnancy through several mechanisms. However, Mirena lawsuits allege that the Mirena IUD can cause serious Mirena complications.

According to postmarket reports and allegations in Mirena lawsuits, the Mirena IUD can cause a number of serious Mirena side effects, including uterine perforation and migration. In this situation, the Mirena IUD may punch through the wall of the uterus and move around within the abdomen. This can cause serious damage to the uterus and other organs and may require surgical removal of the Mirena IUD.

Thousands of Mirena lawsuits have been filed, leading the legal system to invoke a procedure called a multidistrict litigation or MDL. MDLs are a type of group litigation where the court system coordinates dozens, hundreds, or even thousands of individual lawsuits together. The individual cases, like the Mirena lawsuits in the Mirena MDL, typically allege that the plaintiffs have suffered similar harm under similar conditions from the same defendant. In order to work together in an MDL, the individual cases have to involve similar arguments and hinge on similar evidence. MDLs like the one comprised of Mirena lawsuits allow the legal system to streamline litigation and avoid duplication of efforts across similar Mirena lawsuits.

MDLs often have status conferences to outline strategies and schedule testimony. Since thousands of individual Mirena lawsuits are involved, meetings like the upcoming meeting are critical to hammer out details when thousands of cases hang in the balance. At present, the Mirena MDL includes more than 1,400 individual Mirena lawsuits filed against Bayer over alleged Mirena side effects like perforation and migration.

The Mirena lawsuits in the Mirena MDL typically allege that Mirena’s manufacturer, Bayer, was aware—or reasonably should have been aware—of the serious risks of uterine perforation, migration and other alleged Mirena side effects. The various Mirena lawsuits further allege that not only was Bayer aware, but that the company actively promoted the device in spite of the risk in order to make a profit.

The Mirena MDL is In re: Mirena IUD Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2434, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.