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Articles Posted in Depuy ASR

Depuy ASR Artificial Hip “Part B” Settlement for Future Injuries

Published on: March 4, 2016 | By Clay Hodges

Over the past several weeks we have reviewed the Depuy ASR Settlement Agreement, and recently the Part B extraordinary injury money awards that are available to qualified injured people. You can read about the Part B “Extraordinary Injury Fund” (“EIF”) here, and about Part B “Miscellaneous Injuries” here.

In this post I want to talk about the “Future Matrix,” which is a section in both settlement agreements that provides a pathway for individuals to pursue additional compensation when a problem arises after the original settlement has been signed and initial payments have been made. It can be a very useful option for recovering additional money if a serious health problem arises after the initial settlement has been paid and resolved. Let’s jump in.

Depuy ASR Hip: “Part B” Payments for Lost Earnings, Young Age, Etc.

Published on: February 23, 2016 | By Clay Hodges

In previous articles we looked at the Depuy ASR Settlement Agreement compensation framework. We examined the Part A base award here, and looked at the Part B “Extraordinary Injury Fund” (“EIF”) here. Just to recap, if you received a Depuy ASR hip in a hip replacement surgery, and it later “failed,” causing you to need revision surgery, you likely qualified for participation in the Depuy ASR settlement program.

The Part A award was one monetary award based on having to undergo hip revision surgery. The default Part A amount was $250,000.00, and this figure could be reduced by certain factors, such as smoking, obesity, advanced age, and length of time between original surgery and revision.

The Part B awards were built around “extraordinary injury,” and included compensation to people suffering from less common bad results, such as heart attack, stroke, foot drop, pulmonary embolism, deep vein thrombosis, dislocation, or infection.

In this post I want to drill down a bit on one of the vague areas of potential compensation in the Part B “matrix.” The Depuy Settlement Agreement designates an area for compensation for miscellaneous injury, which is referred to as Matrix Level VII (Discretionary). Let’s look at a few examples:

Failed Artificial Hips: What Cases Are Still Active in 2016?

Published on: January 27, 2016 | By Clay Hodges

Artificial hips have been failing for years now. The effort in the last two decades to build and market a metal-on-metal hip that might last the patient’s lifetime has not been a success. The manufacturers were too quick to move the new metal hips to market, and using the flawed 510(k) fast-track process, they did not test the devices sufficiently to understand the risks. As a result, thousands of people suffered through hip replacement surgery failure and had to undergo revision surgery, just months or a few years after the original surgery. Because of these hip failures, thousands of lawsuits have been filed. The litigation continues for many people, and will continue for years. Still, because most of the failed medical hip products were recalled or taken off the market years ago, the litigation is plainly winding down with several of these artificial hip devices. So what’s still going on? And what does this mean for you?

Artificial Hip Lawsuits: What You Need to Know

Published on: October 15, 2015 | By Clay Hodges

I am pleased to present my new ebook, Artificial Hip Lawsuits: What You Need to Know.

For now I am making the book available for free in digital format; simply click the link on the right and download your copy of the book. We can also send you a printed copy if you like–simply reach out to us using the contact box on the right.

Nine years ago I was hired to represent a woman who suffered terrible pain and misery after her artificial hip failed. Since then I have helped many others who have had traumatic experiences following a failed hip replacement surgery. I hope this book may help you.

Depuy ASR Hip Settlement Part B “Extraordinary Injury Fund”

Published on: September 25, 2015 | By Clay Hodges

Part 3

There are two key areas of compensation under the Depuy ASR Hip Settlement Agreement: The Part A Base Award, which we talked about in the last post, and the Part B Award, which awards additional compensation under Depuy’s “Extraordinary Injury Fund” (“EIF”). Let’s get to those “extraordinary injuries.”

Bilateral Implants

Depuy ASR Hip Settlement Agreements: The Part A “Base” Award

Published on: September 21, 2015 | By Clay Hodges

Part 2

In Part 1 we talked about the process for determining if you would be eligible to participate in the Depuy ASR Hip Settlement. I remind you that although the deadlines for participation in the first two Depuy ASR settlements have passed, people are still filing lawsuits against Depuy Orthopaedics and Johnson & Johnson. More settlement agreements will likely be reached in the future, because many people who have been injured by the metal-on-metal Depuy ASR hip have not been compensated for their injuries. When those new settlement agreements are established, they will likely look much like the first two agreements. So it’s helpful to review those settlement terms.

OK, so picking up where we left off in Part 1: Let’s say you are a patient in the United States and that the Depuy ASR artificial hip system was implanted in your body. It failed. You then had a “revision” surgery to remove the failed hip components. Thus, you would be “eligible” to participate in the settlement. You then hired a lawyer who filed suit in federal court in your state, then properly transferred the case to the MDL in Ohio. From that point, your attorney would then submit all documentation relating to the MDL and its “Case Management Orders.” To participate in the settlement, you and your attorney would need to submit all enrollment forms, claim forms, and other required submissions.

Depuy ASR Hip Settlement Agreements: What It Means For You

Published on: September 14, 2015 | By Clay Hodges

Part 1

After years of litigation and negotiation among the plaintiffs and defendants, the first Depuy ASR hip settlement agreement was reached on November 19, 2013. This settlement document, with all the exhibits, was 181 pages long. The first settlement agreement required that you must have undergone revision surgery on or before August 31, 2013. A second settlement agreement was reached on March 2, 2015, which allowed participation in the settlement if you received a revision surgery after August 31, 2013 but no later than January 31, 2015. The key terms in the second settlement agreement are the same as those in the first settlement. The agreements take a long time read through, digest, and understand. In this post and those that follow, I am going to help you work through the settlement language.

Please note: The deadlines for participation in both Depuy settlement agreements have passed. At the moment there are no settlement agreements in place in which you may enroll or participate now or in the immediate future. However, there should be new settlement agreements down the road for those of you who undergo a revision surgery after January 31, 2015. Further, you still have options if you had a revision surgery before January 31, 2015 but simply missed the deadlines for enrollment (which I discuss below). I will keep you posted if and when a third settlement agreement is reached.

Recent Jury Verdicts in Artificial Hip Trials (Part 2)

Published on: August 10, 2015 | By Clay Hodges

The following jury verdicts have been handed down in trials over failed artificial hips in 2015:

Smith v. DePuy Orthopaedics Inc., et al., (Oklahoma District Court, Tulsa County).

Jury Award: $2,500,000.00 for Plaintiff Andrea Smith.

Recent Jury Verdicts In Artificial Hip Trials (Part 1)

Published on: August 6, 2015 | By Clay Hodges

Those who have suffered from a failed artificial hip, have undergone a revision surgery (or even more than one), and now contemplate taking legal action against the manufacturer, often ask what kinds of money judgments plaintiffs have received from juries across the country. I have collected a representative sample of jury verdicts over the last few years against artificial hip manufacturers like Depuy and Zimmer. The good news for injured people is that some plaintiffs have received several million dollars from juries for their injuries. The bad news? Juries found no negligence at all by the manufacturer; in those cases, the injured person received no money at all.

I’ve collected a list of recent cases and their jury verdicts involved. This is not an exhaustive list, and other jury verdicts are out there, but this will give you a sense of what is going on with artificial hip cases jury trials:

Kransky v. DePuy Orthopaedics (Los Angeles Superior Court)

The Depuy ASR Artificial Hip Design Flaw that Resulted in Thousands of Lawsuits

Published on: July 28, 2015 | By Clay Hodges

In the previous post, we looked at the difference between ASR surgery and total hip replacement surgeries. We also discussed the Depuy’s “metal-on-metal” (MoM) design. Now, let’s look more deeply into the failure of the metal-on-metal design.

The design problem with the Depuy ASR Cup.

The defect in the Depuy ASR artificial hip appears to be related to design. Orthopedic experts have stated that the design of the ASR cup, which is shallower than standard cups made by other companies, is one aspect of the Depuy ASR Hip’s problems. Dr. Thomas Schmalzreid, a surgeon who designed the Depuy ASR Hip has stated that Depuy had known since 2008 that the Depuy ASR cup may have design flaws. Dr. Schmalzried has said that Depuy officials realized in the first few years that the Depuy ASR cup might be more of a challenge to implant properly then competing cups. Dr. Schmalzried has stated that “the window for component position that is consistent for good, long-term clinical function is smaller for the [Depuy ASR Hip]” than other cups. That is a highly technical (and bone dry) way of explaining that the ASR cup is harder to implant properly into the hip cavity for long-term successful hip surgeries.

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★★★★★

I was involved in a case for the faulty hip replacements. Clay Hodges represented me. I can't say enough about how much he has helped me. Clay was able to win multiple settlements on my behalf with most of them being the maximum amount able to be awarded. Matt J.

Clay, thank you sir for making a disheartening experience at least palatable, you and your staff were honest, caring and understanding through the entire process of my wife’s hip replacements, while monetary settlements never make the pain and suffering end, it sometimes is the only way people can fight back to right a wrong. J. V.

We are absolutely pleased with how Clay Hodges handled my husband’s hip replacement claim. He always kept us informed of the progress. And, his work resulted in a settlement which we are extremely pleased. Thank you, Clay! Carol L. & Norm L.