According to a recent court order, a group of ten cases, this time with New York plaintiffs, are currently being worked up for another bellwether trial scheduled to take place in September of this year. Expert disclosures have been submitted by all parties and depositions are scheduled to take place in the upcoming weeks.

These plaintiffs and thousands of other people are alleging serious injuries as a result of DePuy Orthopedics’ Pinnacle metal-on-metal hip implant systems. In many cases, the metal-on-metal articulation of these hip implants has caused metal debris to be released into the bloodstream, leading to a condition known as metallosis. This metallosis, or poisoning of the blood, has required countless numbers of patients to undergo revision surgeries in order to replace the faulty devices. Litigation regarding these implants has been ongoing for the last three years, with multiple bellwether trials already completed.

In March 2016, jurors awarded $142 million in actual damages and $360 million in punitive dames to a group of five plaintiffs who alleged that DePuy knew of the faulty design of the hip implants they received. Then, in December 2016, a Texas jury awarded over $1 billion to a group of six plaintiffs alleging failure-to-warn claims against DePuy. This verdict included giving $30 million to plaintiffs in compensatory damages, as well as $1.04 billion in punitive damages.