(Updated Nov. 27, 2018)

Metal-on-metal (MoM) hip implants have spawned massive recalls and thousands of lawsuits, some of which have been settled for billions of dollars. In the fall of 2014, Stryker agreed to pay $1.43 billion to settle thousands of lawsuits concerning its ABG II and Rejuvenate hip stems. Under the settlement, each plaintiff could receive as much as $600,000 in damages.

Stryker agreed to pay $1.43 billion to settle thousands of lawsuits.

Now, Stryker’s V40 femoral heads—which are used in MoM hip replacements—appear hazardous enough to warrant an alert from the company warning against potential side effects, such as loss of mobility, pain, inflammation, and dislocation. In November 2018, Stryker reached a confidential settlement agreement that will resolve hundreds of V40 femoral head lawsuits.

If you or a loved one required revision surgery because of a defective hip implant, contact us for a free, no-obligation legal consultation.

J&J/DePuy’s ASR Hip Implants — $2.5 Billion (2013)

In August 2010, Johnson & Johnson’s Depuy Orthopaedics announced it was recalling two hip replacement systems, the ASR Hip Resurfacing System and the ASR XL Acetabular System due to unwanted side effects like metal poisoning.

The National Joint Registry of England and Wales claimed that within five years, one in eight patients who received the recalled hip implants would require revision surgery. DePuy itself estimated that roughly 10,000 patients would need revision surgery.

These hip issues led to thousands of lawsuits filed by affected patients. In November 2013, J&J announced it would pay $2.5 billion to resolve about 8,000 ASR lawsuits. That settlement sum included $250,000 for each patient to cover a revision surgery.

Stryker’s Rejuvenate & ABG II Hip Stems — $1.43 Billion (2014)

In addition to the V40 femoral head, Stryker also manufactured the Rejuvenate and ABG II hip stems, both of which were recalled in 2012. These hip stems generated a flood of lawsuits filed by patients who suffered complications after their hip replacement surgeries. Many would need a second (or revision) hip surgery.

In the fall of 2014, Stryker agreed to pay $1.43 billion to settle thousands of lawsuits concerning its ABG II and Rejuvenate hip stems. Under the settlement, each plaintiff could receive as much as $600,000 in damages.

In December 2016, this settlement was expanded to include anyone who underwent revision surgery before December 19, 2016.

Wright Medical's Conserve Hip Implant — $240 Million (2016)

In November 2016, Wright Medical Technology settled roughly 1,300 lawsuits filed over complications arising from its Conserve metal-on-metal hip implants. These 1,300 plaintiffs required revision surgery because of allegedly faulty implants.

A jury awarded Ms. Christiansen $11 million.

Prior to this settlement, a Utah ski instructor named Robyn Christiansen won $11 million from a jury in the Conserve bellwether trial. A judge later reduced that award to $2.1 million, which Wright still challenged. They lost that challenge in April 2017, when a judge upheld the $2.1 million award.

Ms. Christiansen had "severe metal poisoning and tissue necrosis" and required a full revision surgery.

Zimmer Inc. Hip Implant — $2 Million (2017)

In April 2017, an Albuquerque jury awarded $2 million to Brian McDonald, an economist who received a faulty Zimmer Inc. hip replacement in 2010. Debris from the metal-on-metal hip implant gave Mr. McDonald metal poisoning and caused his leg muscle to deteriorate and even die.

Mr. McDonald had a revision surgery to replace the metal implant in his hip only to get an infection during that surgery. He then required a third operation to remove the leg muscle that had died.

Mr. McDonald says he can walk but cannot play sports. The threat of re-infection will loom for the rest of his life, which most likely factored into the jury's decision.

Stryker V40 Femoral Head — Undisclosed (2018)

Hundreds of Stryker V40 lawsuits will be resolved under the terms of a confidential settlement agreement reached between Stryker and injured patients in November 2018. The settlement will resolve the lawsuits in the New Jersey and Massachusetts multidistrict litigation filed against Stryker.

J&J/DePuy’s Pinnacle Hip Implants — $1.75 Billion and Counting

DePuy’s Pinnacle hip implants have caused similar side effects to the ASR models and generated thousands of lawsuits by affected patients.

In March 2016, a jury in Dallas, Texas awarded $502 million to patients who said their failed Pinnacle devices had caused pain and would require (or had required) revision surgeries. (A judge later reduced this award to $150 million.)

In another bellwether trial that came to a close in December 2016, a Texas jury awarded $1 billion to six plaintiffs who needed revision surgeries because of painful side effects caused by their Pinnacle hip implants. According to Reuters, these side effects included tissue death and bone erosion. (A judge later cut this award in half.)

In November 2017, a jury ordered J&J to pay $247 million to six patients who say their poorly designed metal-on-metal hip implants caused "tissue death and bone erosion." Johnson & Johnson vowed to appeal.

There are still thousands more Pinnacle cases currently on trial in North Texas courts as an MDL (multi-district litigation). This is a bellwether trial for Pinnacle, which means its outcome will influence other Pinnacle lawsuits and perhaps persuade J&J to settle future cases.

ClassAction.com Can Help

For people who have undergone the difficult process of hip surgery, discovering that their new hip is defective can be truly devastating—financially, physically, and emotionally.

We can help. If you or a loved one has a metal-on-metal hip implant, contact us today for a free, no-obligation consultation. You may be able to hold the manufacturer responsible and get relief for past and future medical expenses, pain and suffering, lost wages, and other damages.