Plaintiffs & DePuy Hip Implant Lawsuit Attorneys Anxious for Executive Testimony
By Andrea Gressman
DePuy Orthopaedics (a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson) issued a global recall of their ASR metal-on-metal hip replacement product in August 2010. At the time, the company admitted to a 12-13% failure rate for the hip implant devices, which was highly unacceptable. A later study by the British Orthopedic Association reported a 21% failure rate just four years after the metal hip implant was put in place, and two years beyond that the percentage rose to a whopping 49%.
A short time following the DePuy ASR recall, the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation consolidated all federal ASR hip implant lawsuits into the Northern District of Ohio on December 7, 2010. Recent court documents now state that eight top DePuy executives, including company presidents (former and current), must testify in future months during the DePuy hip implant lawsuit litigation process. Everyone involved in the DePuy hip implant lawsuits, including plaintiffs and DePuy lawsuit attorneys, are anxiously waiting for what the DePuy executives may reveal.
Executive Testimony Could Reveal Company was Aware of DePuy ASR Hip Implant Side Effects and Safety Issues
The DePuy executives will be required to disclose all information they currently have regarding the ongoing DePuy ASR hip implant lawsuits. As part of the investigation, they will be required to supply documentation, including notes, outlines, presentation materials, testimonies, and oral proposals either prepared or supplied to them that are pertinent to the ASR metal hip implant devices.
Current DePuy president Andrew Ekdahl, who is included as an executive, stated recently that it was just business that a 2010 ASR hip implant recall was issued. However, a February 2012 New York Times articles indicated the executives knew about the safety problems pertaining to the metal-on-metal replacement hip implant because the FDA rejected a product just like it.
DePuy sought approval on a similar version of the ASR hip implant for use in hip resurfacing surgeries, which are operations like total hip replacements, but salvage more of the patient’s original bone. The FDA rejected the device due to a high rate of early failure or revision according to clinical trials.
The company was able to side step the clinical trial process with the DePuy ASR hip replacement device because they were able to prove its substantial similarity to other metal on metal hip replacement implant devices already on the market. Both devices use a solid metal cup used in replacing a patient’s hip socket. This is a critical component in the hip implant. It is this cup that rubs against the metal ball, a defect in design, which ultimately led to metallosis. Metallosis is a condition where metal shards enter the blood stream and can lead to blood poisoning.
Additional DePuy Executives to Testify in DePuy Hip Implant Lawsuits
David Floyd, the former president of DePuy when the 2010 ASR hip implant recall was issued; Tom Camino, the director of worldwide hip development; and Rodrigo Diaz, the manager of clinical research are other executives required to testify in the DePuy hip implant lawsuit MDL. Additional executives required to provide testimony are the marketing director, development manager, biostatistics and data management director, as well as members of the research and development team.
The DePuy lawsuit MDL has grown to 6,000 DePuy hip implant lawsuits. Plaintiffs claim negligence on part of the company, indicating lax safety studies and failure to provide adequate or proper warnings to patients and doctors of the potential dangers posed by its product. 2,000 additional DePuy lawsuits are proceeding in state courts. Nevada’s first trial is comprised of three DePuy hip implant lawsuits, and each plaintiff negotiated a settlement of approximately $200,000 per DePuy lawsuit.
Filing a DePuy Hip Implant Lawsuit
If you have experienced one of the negative side effects of a DePuy hip implant please visit the J&J DePuy ASR, Pinnacle Metal Hip Replacement Implant Class Action Lawsuit Investigation page. You will receive a free consultation from a DePuy lawsuit specialist.
DePuy lawsuit attorneys are currently investigating the following DePuy side effects: failure of the metal on metal hip implant requiring early replacement, a dislocated hip, leaking of toxic substances in your bloodstream from your hip implant like chromium or cobalt, cancer, degenerative heart disease or cardiomyopathy, loss of bone strength or structure which can result in bone fractures, tissue death for any tissue surrounding the implant, non-cancerous tumors or pseudotumors around the hip implant, cobalt poisoning, and metallosis or metal poisoning due to chromium or cobalt particles from the hip implant leaking into nearby tissue or the patient’s bloodstream. You may have a case to seek compensation through a DePuy ASR class action lawsuit settlement.
Updated October 15th, 2012
All medical device, dangerous drug and medical class action and lawsuit news updates are listed in the Drug and Medical Device section of Top Class Actions.
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