California Appellate Court Upholds $8 Million Verdict in DePuy Metal-on-Metal Hip Implant Case

A California state court recently denied Johnson & Johnson’s appeal of an $8 million verdict against the company regarding its DePuy ASR XL metal-on-metal hip implant device. The device is manufactured by DePuy Orthopedics, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson. The trial that yielded the multi-million dollar verdict was but one of thousands of lawsuits that have been filed against Johnson & Johnson and DePuy, alleging that the hip implant devices caused serious injuries and that the companies failed to provide sufficient warnings about the potentially life-altering side effects that could result. The plaintiff, Loren Kransky, alleged that his device failed only five years after he received the implant. During the March 2013 trial, which lasted for five weeks, the California jury concluded that the device was designed in a defective manner and that both Johnson & Johnson and DePuy were negligent in the design, manufacture, and marketing of the hip implant device.

The plaintiff in the present case, Loren Kransky, alleged that his device failed only five years after he received the implant. During the March 2013 trial, which lasted for five weeks, the California jury concluded that the device was designed in a defective manner and that both Johnson & Johnson and DePuy were negligent in the design, manufacture, and marketing of the hip implant device.

In 2010, Johnson & Johnson and DePuy removed the hip implant device from the market after they received an abnormally high number of reports indicating that patients who received the device required revision surgeries. Some of the most common side effects associated with the metal-on-metal device were metal fragments in the blood and metallosis, which is a serious type of metal poisoning. Other patients experienced pain and discomfort and complete device failures.

Both defendants filed an appeal, challenging the verdict in the California Fourth District Court of Appeals. Among the grounds on which they challenged the verdict were several evidentiary rulings-based arguments. The defendants alleged that during the trial, the judge impermissibly excluded evidence that the FDA cleared the devices and failed to allow otherwise admissible expert witness testimony. According to the appeals court, the lower court judge did not abuse his discretion in failing to admit this evidence.

The appellate court judge also rejected DePuy’s argument that the jury’s verdict was not supported by substantial evidence and that it was internally inconsistent. The court also concluded that the $8 million award was not unreasonably excessive. The appellate panel of three judges unanimously affirmed the lower court judge’s ruling and the jury’s verdict.

If you have received a DePuy metal-on-metal hip implant or have experienced serious injuries and damages as a result of another defective medical device, you may be entitled to compensation. At Moll Law Group, our DePuy lawyers have handled numerous claims involving medical device litigation for patients across the United States, including in Illinois, Florida, Texas, and New York. We offer a free consultation to help you learn more about the medical device litigation process and how we may be able to assist you. Call us at 312-462-1700 or contact us online to schedule your appointment now.

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