Attorneys with clients who have filed testosterone product lawsuits were scheduled to meet with the federal judge presiding over testosterone lawsuits pending in federal courts.

At this meeting, the court will likely review different proposals on how to coordinate the hundreds of testosterone product lawsuits currently in litigation.

In June, all testosterone product lawsuits (including Androgel lawsuits) pending trial were centralized as a multidistrict litigation (MDL) in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois before U.S. District Judge Matthew Kennelly. There are more than 250 pending testosterone lawsuits with similar allegations that testosterone replacement therapy products have serious side effects for male consumers, including heart attacks, blood clots, and strokes.

The plaintiffs involved in the testosterone product MDL also claim that the testosterone drug manufacturers aggressively marketed their products while neglecting to warn consumers of the potential risks to men’s health.

In previous proceedings, Judge Kennelly requested all parties involved in the testosterone product MDL to coordinate the federal cases and parallel cases submitted to state courts. On Dec. 4, however, a joint status report on the testosterone MDL was filed, stating the parties representing the plaintiffs and the defendants could not agree on a single course of action in coordinating the testosterone lawsuits.

According to the testosterone product MDL, the defending drug makers in these centralized lawsuits proposed that Judge Kennelly institute an order for coordination. This coordination order would delineate several requirements, with the goal of easing the burden of discovery on the defending parities.

However, the plaintiffs’ legal counsel submitted a competing proposal that states the plaintiffs’ attorneys do not see a need for coordination, given that it would be difficult for Kennelly to enforce a coordination order in state proceedings.

Should the coordination order be granted in this testosterone product MDL, the plaintiffs’ attorneys have created an alternate proposal.

The court will also review other pending matters in this MDL including discovery, documents, and depositions. A small group of bellwether trials specifically dealing with Androgel lawsuits are set for trial in the late 2016 and early 2017 as part of the discovery process for the testosterone product MDL.

The Testosterone Products MDL is In re: Testosterone Replacement Therapy Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2545, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

Testosterone Product Side Effects

A number of testosterone gels, testosterone creams, and testosterone injections and patches currently on the North American drug market have allegedly been aggressively marketed to middle-aged men with the promise of ridding or reducing the natural side effects of male aging.

According to various testosterone product lawsuits, testosterone drug manufacturers marketed testosterone therapy as an easy way for middle-aged men, who are experiencing a natural decrease in the testosterone hormone, to have increased libido, energy, and muscle maintenance. However, these same companies may have neglected to inform male consumers of possible, serious side effects associated with using testosterone products.

Some serious testosterone product side effects include:

• Blood clot
• Enlarged prostrate
• Heart attack
• Stroke
• Death

As a result, many individuals and family members have filed testosterone product lawsuits or have joined testosterone product class action lawsuits against the manufacturers of these products.