Attorneys Ready for First US Trial Against Biomet Over M2a Hips
(Sarasota, FL – March 20, 2018) The first Biomet M2a metal on metal hip replacement trial in the United States is set for September 2018 in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. It is a significant legal challenge to Biomet Orthopedics since the company has not yet faced a single trial over their M2a-38 and M2a-Magnum hips.
The injured patients represented by mctlaw suffered from severe pseudotumors as well as tissue and muscle death from their Biomet M2a hip implants. Surgeons for all 3 victims had to remove the defective Biomet M2a hip replacements, surgically cut out the pseudotumors from the hip implants, and remove dead tissue. Then they put in a different type of hip implant.
In addition to the Ft. Lauderdale lawsuit, mctlaw has filed complaints and is preparing for multiple trials against Biomet in state courts around the country.
US Patients Not Adequately Warned of Dangers
“This is a ticking time bomb for thousands of patients in the United States who don’t know they have a very dangerous device in their bodies,” says lead attorney Altom M. Maglio. “Biomet has not warned U.S. patients or surgeons about the serious health consequences of these dangerous hips and we don’t understand why. Failing to warn people is only making the problem worse.”
Biomet recalled the M2a-38mm hip replacement device throughout the United Kingdom, Europe, and Australia, but has not recalled the same hip in the United States. In April 2016 the company sent warning letters to European surgeons admitting higher than expected failure rates for the hip implant. In 2011 Biomet stopped all sales of the M2a-38mm and Magnum hip replacements in Australia, and in 2015 issued a Hazard Alert for higher than expected failure rates in Australia.
But in the United States, Biomet has not warned tens of thousands of patients or their doctors about the life-threatening complications from the identical hip implant.
Litigation Strategy in First Biomet M2a Metal on Metal Hip Trial
The litigation strategy of mctlaw and partner firm, Nash & Franciskato, gives their Biomet M2a clients options not available to others across the country. “By filing our clients’ Biomet metal on metal cases in state courts, we have been able to uncover millions of additional documents that help prove that these are defective hip replacements and that Biomet has known about it for years,” says Maglio. That same evidence was denied to attorneys litigating Biomet cases in Federal court. “We have also taken over 30 depositions of Biomet executives, aggressively questioning them about the defective M2a hips.” Recently parties on all sides of the federal litigation indicated a desire to send all cases back to their individual attorneys to prepare for trial.
Recent Metal on Metal Hip Verdicts
Other metal-on-metal hip manufacturers have faced jaw-dropping verdicts against them. Juries in 3 separate trials ordered Johnson & Johnson subsidiary, DePuy Orthopaedics, to pay a $1-billion verdict to six plaintiffs in California, a $502 million-dollar verdict to 5 plaintiffs in Texas, and a $247-million verdict to six injured plaintiffs in New York.
In 2014 Biomet agreed to a $56 million-dollar settlement over the M2a-38 and Magnum hips, but it only applied to a very small number of U.S. patients and came with many strings attached, leaving out thousands of people with M2a hips.
The Biomet M2a-38 was introduced to the global market in 2001. Since then, patients with M2a hip replacements have reportedly developed complications from heavy metal poisoning, tissue death, pseudotumors, bone loss, heart problems, vision loss, and death.
About mctlaw
Mctlaw is a national medical product liability law firm with offices in Seattle, WA., Washington, DC, and Sarasota, FL. Mctlaw filed the first metal on metal (MoM) hip replacement lawsuit in the United States in 2008 and has been continuously litigating metal on metal hip replacement cases since that time. The Firm is presently representing patients across the United States who have suffered the effects of heavy metal poisoning from Biomet M2a-38 and M2a-Magnum hip replacements.
Contact:
Altom M. Maglio of mctlaw is available to discuss this case.
Phone: 888.952.5242
