by Maria Markou
The Rheingold product liability trial litigation team has represented many injured clients and wrongful death cases against Johnson & Johnson: DePuy Pinnacle hip implants, DePuy ASR hip implants, Ethicon pelvic mesh, as well as prescription and over-the-counter drugs. Things have gotten so bad for J&J that the U.S. Department of Justice has started to investigate the troubled company for destruction of litigation documents. The tens of thousands of lost documents are substantial to injured women’s claims.
Johnson &Johnson’s troubles are not just limited to the Department of Justice. A nonprofit group, Corporate Action Network, has requested that Attorney General Eric Holder also investigate Johnson & Johnson for crimes of obstructing justice and destroying litigation documents. In civil trial court, the Honorable Judge Cheryl Eifert in West Virginia issued an Order that Johnson & Johnson had negligently destroyed or lost documents regarding the testing and complications for pelvic mesh implants.
Millions of women have received transvaginal mesh implants to repair pelvic organ prolapse or stress urinary incontinence. This happens because of the lack of urethra support, which is often a consequence of damage to pelvic support structures from childbirth. Manufacturers such as Johnson & Johnson, American Medical Systems, Inc. (AMS), Boston Scientific Corp., Coloplast Corp., C.R. Bard, Inc., and multiple others, have been accused of poorly designing and testing these products. More than 22,000 women have sued Johnson & Johnson for unbearable pain, infections, bleeding, and urinary problems. Victims of pelvic mesh implants allege that Johnson & Johnson executives knew that these implants were defective, but they didn’t take any precautions and didn’t give any warnings to the consumers. Now, many of these women are disabled with pain and unable of having an active life. If you feel that you have been a victim of a defective mesh, contact our Women’s Litigation Trial Team by calling (212) 684-1880 and asking for Melissa Mendoza, Esq. Se habla Espanol.
