A group of plaintiffs who are suing Boston Scientific (NYSE:BSX), Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ), Secant Medical and other pelvic mesh makers want a federal judge to send their cases back to a state court in Philadelphia.
Boston Scientific, J&J’s Ethicon subsidiary, C.R. Bard (NYSE:BCR), Endo Health Solutions (NSDQ:ENDP), Cook Medical and Coloplast (CPH:COLO B) are facing thousands of product liability and personal injury lawsuits over their respective pelvic mesh devices. Hundreds of cases have been consolidated into multi-district litigation under Judge Joseph Goodwin of the U.S. District Court for Southern West Virginia.
In February, more cases were consolidated by Judge Arnold New, director of the Complex Litigation Center at the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas. Now other plaintiffs whose cases were removed to the U.S. District Court for Eastern Pennsylvania want their suits moved to the court in Philly as well.
They cite a prior ruling by Goodwin in the West Virginia MDL remanding more than 150 cases involving Perkasie, Pa.-based Secant Medical to the Philadelphia court, according to court documents.
"Based upon Judge Goodwin’s order, plaintiff requests that this matter be remanded to the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas," according to the motion by plaintiff Carrie McBride. "Plaintiff has amassed evidence of Secant’s direct and significant involvement in the design and manufacturing of the meshes that caused plaintiff’s injuries. This evidence shows that Secant has been integrally involved in manufacturing the mesh from spools of polypropylene filaments that Boston Scientific Corp. supplies to Secant; designing the way these filaments are knitted into a mesh implants [sic]; knitting the mesh implants; and preparing the woven mesh implant for implantation. The evidence demonstrates that Secant actually manufactures and designs the mesh material that was implanted into plaintiff."