Friday, April 1, 2011

Patients Wonder: Who Can File a Zimmer Hip Lawsuit?

The Zimmer Durom Cup hip replacement system has become controversial in recent years due to the high rate of failure experienced by patients who had been fitted with the system, and many of these patients are wondering if they are eligible to file a lawsuit against Zimmer. This would be useful to many patients because a lawsuit could mean compensation – relief from some of the medical bills, lost wages, and other expenses that may have been incurred as a result of the side effects associated with the implant.
The Durom Cup has been found to experience a higher rate of failure than similar devices, and because of this Zimmer suspended sales of the device to investigate claims in July of 2008. However, just three months later, they began to sell the product once again. Even before the recall, the Durom Cup was implanted in around 12,000 Americans, and thousands more have been used since the product was reintroduced to the market.

It is the 12,000 who were fitted with the device before the recall who have the strongest case. Although this does not mean it will be impossible for those who received the device after the temporary recall to file, it may not be as easy for them to get compensation from Zimmer.

Zimmer hip lawsuits are currently consolidated into a multidistrict litigation case, which is a process similar to class action in that all of the pre-trial proceedings take place as though there were only one case to deal with. This streamlines the legal process and helps the cases move through the legal system more quickly. However, these lawsuits – unlike in class action – will remain individualized and be sent back to the courts from which they came for the actual trial. However, plaintiffs may be settled with at any time during the legal process – Zimmer may come forward with a payout to be given to the plaintiff out of court, which will end the legal process for that particular case.
The first Zimmer hip trials may begin later this year.

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