Weekly Mass Torts Bulletin 2022-Apr-25

3M company is continuing to support its earplugs even after repeated allegations from military veterans of defective designs that result in hearing loss.

3M’s affiliate, the US Chamber of Commerce, filed a brief in the US District Court for the Northern District of Florida in an ongoing trial to support its arguments and avoid the responsibility of selling faulty earplugs.

As per the brief filed by the company, the earplugs supplied by 3M were approved by the military. The earplugs underwent a thorough assessment, which indicated the products were safe for use before being purchased by the veterans. But as per the reports of 2020, the service veterans accused that the earplugs were defective and manipulation of safety testing forced the usage of the products for the veterans, which eventually resulted in 300,000 veterans, current service members, and other citizens suffering from hearing loss and tinnitus.

3M revealed that every independent, third-party organization, including NIOSH, the US CDC and others, tested their products and concluded that they are safe for use.

Currently, 3M is working to overturn its damaged image with an initiative to support the soldiers and the women. The company even displayed on its website that it has great respect for the brave men and women serving the nation, and their safety is a priority for 3M.

3M has placed itself as a leader in career placement initiatives for service members and veterans. The company has set up a Secretary of Defense Executive Fellows (SDEF) program for the Department of Defense through public-private partnerships.

The company has been into several collaborations that will help the military veterans and help the nation's defense to defend its products and maintain a fair image in the market.

A $10 million settlement which would be paid over the course of 10 years has been reached between Endo Pharmaceuticals and San Francisco over the company's role in the opioid crisis.

The settlement has come just days before the company's bellwether bench trial, which was supposed to kick off in California federal court. As per the agreement, the company will pay $5 million immediately, and the remaining amount of another $5 million would be paid out over 10 years.

San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu said that it is the largest per capita settlement by Endo as compared to other jurisdictions around the country. He even stated that the city's willingness and readiness about the trial have helped the city to maximize the settlement

As per the order of U.S. District Judge Charles R. Breyer, San Francisco has not provided relevant evidence where it speculates that Endo international exercised "specific manipulative" control over its subsidiaries. It resulted in Judge Breyer partially granting Endo's bid for summary judgment by tossing San Francisco's claim that the parent company is responsible for its subsidiaries' actions. The subsidiary companies of Endo include Endo Pharmaceuticals, Endo Health Solutions and Par Pharmaceutical.

The upcoming trial, which is scheduled to begin on April 25, will include Teva Pharmaceuticals, Allergan, Anda Inc. and several other drugmakers and distributors. All the defendants face similar allegations that they conveyed deceptive information about the risks and safety of opioids.

The country witnessed a wave of sweeping settlements and landmark verdicts in terms of the opioid crisis. Earlier this week, pharmaceutical companies agreed on similar settlements with West Virginia and Alabama.

The state attorney general of Alabama said that the state has reached a $276 million settlement with Johnson & Johnson, McKesson Corp and Endo International Plc to resolve the opioid addiction crisis claims against the companies.

As per the agreement, the drugmakers Johnson & Johnson and Endo will pay $70.3 million and $25 million, respectively, whereas the drug distributor McKesson will pay $141 million to fight the opioid crisis. The companies would even pay $40 million in attorneys' fees.

The drugmakers are accused of practicing deceptive marketing strategies to downplay the addiction risk of painkillers, and the distributor, McKesson, is accused of failing to prevent the diversion of opioids for illicit purposes. All the companies have denied the allegations against them and said that they are not responsible for the crisis.

A spokesperson for Johnson & Johnson (J&J), manufacturers of pain medications Duragesic and Nucynta, said that the company has stopped selling prescription opioids in the United States. The company even claimed that its past marketing efforts were appropriate and responsible.

Earlier, Alabama declined to join the $26 billion national opioid settlement, which included McKesson and two other top U.S. distributors, citing the amount to be alloted to the state from the settlement would be inadequate to deal with the opioid crisis. Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall said that the state would get more amount and faster payout from McKesson in the current litigation compared to the national settlement.

If the state would have joined the national settlement, it would have received $115 million over 18 years from McKesson and $70.3 million over nine years from J&J. But as per the new settlement, Mckesson will pay the amount in nine years, and J&J will make the full payment within a year.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the U.S. has reported more than 500,000 opioid overdose deaths over two decades.

Johnson & Johnson (J&J) agreed on a settlement where it would pay $99 million to West Virginia over the company's role in fueling the opioid crisis in the state.

West Virginia is also seeking claims against Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd and AbbVie Inc’s Allergan for their role in the crisis. The claims are overlooked in the Kanawha County Circuit Court trial.

The company's spokesperson said that the company has denied that J&J does not admit liability or wrongdoing in the settlement. Even the other companies involved in the lawsuit did not respond.

Endo has also been a defendant in the ongoing trial even though West Virginia reached a $26 million settlement with the state earlier. J&J had sold branded painkillers Duragesic and Nucynta but has currently discontinued the sale of prescription opioid medication.

Attorney General Patrick Morrisey of West Virginia said that the settlement would resolve the lawsuits brought by local government and allow the state to fund programs that would address and prevent opioid addiction problems in the state.

A nationwide $5 billion opioid settlement was been finalized by J&J in February to resolve opioid lawsuits involving state and local governments against the drug companies. West Virginia did not join the settlement as it would have resulted in a much lesser settlement amount of $50 million for the state.

West Virginia has been one of the most badly affected states in the U.S. due to the opioid crisis reporting around 500,000 overdose deaths over the past two decades. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the state documented an overdose death rate of more than three times the national average in 2020.

A man who alleged C.R. Bard of designing a defective hernia mesh patch has been awarded $250,000 in the second bellwether trial from the multidistrict litigation over hernia mesh products.

The verdict in the trial has been awarded on the 18th day of trial after the jury rejected products liability, failure to warn, negligent misrepresentation and fraudulent misrepresentation claims.

The plaintiff in the lawsuit had got a Ventralex Hernia Patch implanted in July 2007, as mentioned in the complaint. He had to undergo several surgeries due to the patch. The plaintiff filed a suit, along with his spouse, who was awarded $5,000 in loss of consortium damages.

The plaintiff's attorney, over and over, told the jury that Bard's Ventralex is still on the market, which is unfair as it is defective in design. The jury responded by stating that the court is aware of the defective design of the patch and it is glad that the plaintiff dared to report the issue which has resulted in this immportant verdict.

The first bellwether trial held in Ohio was awarded in the favor of Bard and its subsidiary Davol where the jury did not find the company responsible for the injuries sustained by the plaintiff due to Ventralight ST hernia mesh.

According to the  Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation, it is the third biggest MDL in the country that involves nearly 16,700 pending cases over the Bard products.