In a breaking development, C.R. Bard has agreed to settle a woman’s claims that its vaginal-mesh implants caused her injuries as the second federal trial of lawsuits over the devices was about to begin in West Virginia. This settlement comes on the heels of the verdict reached by a West Virginia jury last week in the first bellwether trial which ordered Bard to pay $2 million in damages in a separate suit involving the product.
Today, the attorneys for Wanda Queen of North Carolina notified a judge in Charleston, West Virginia, that they had reached a settlement agreement with Defendant Bard for her claims involving Bard’s Avaulta insert which caused her significant pain and forced her undergo six surgeries. Although the terms of the settlement that concluded the short-lived second bellwether trial against Bard were not disclosed, Scott Lowry, a Bard spokesman, said today’s accord covered only Queen’s claims and wasn’t part of a larger resolution of thousands of others that are pending.
“This is a large, complex litigation and Bard will consider each case based on the facts and merits,” Lowry said in an e-mailed statement. “We will continue to vigorously defend against all other lawsuits involving Avaulta.”
Bard, based in Murray Hill, New Jersey faces more than 8,000 claims over Avaulta, which women allege can cause organ damage and make sexual intercourse painful when the devices erode. Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), Endo Health Solutions Inc. (ENDP) and Boston Scientific Corp. (BSX) face similar claims that their implants, threaded in place through vaginal incisions, shrink over time.
The implant cases against Bard and other manufacturers have been consolidated before U.S. District Judge Joseph Goodwin in Charleston for pretrial information exchanges. Two other trials are set for October, according to court dockets.
As the transvaginal mesh litigation continues to unfold, its progress and updates will be posted here for all those interested in following its progression.
The lawyers at Childers, Schlueter & Smith are devoted to helping victims throughout the country receive justice for their losses. We continue to review, investigate and file lawsuits on new TVM cases from all states around the country.
