Thursday, January 9, 2014

Outcome of C.R. Bard January Trial May Have Crucial Implications on Mesh Lawsuits

The year 2013 saw two vaginal mesh lawsuits against C.R. Bard, which were part of the scheduled bellwether trials, concluded in favor of the plaintiffs. Donna Cisson, the plaintiff in the first bellwether trial was awarded damages totaling $2 million. The second bellwether trial was settled out of court before trial can commence.

It was reported that immediately after these developments, settlement talks were initiated between a number of defendants and thousands of plaintiffs. This has led observers to remark that these actions may have to do with the favorable outcomes of these vaginal mesh claims.

With another mesh bellwether trial coming up on January 10, 2014, legal experts believe that the results may have crucial implications on thousands of vaginal mesh lawsuits. Should the case of Jones vs. Bard be ruled in favor of the claimant, settlement may be finally consummated.

It is perhaps with this possibility that Judge Joseph Goodwin of the US District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia has recently issued a court order for the registration of all pending cases and unfiled claims against C.R. Bard. This was particularly directed to counsels representing one or more plaintiffs in the Bard multidistrict litigation (MDL).