Court Upholds $11+ Million Jury Award in NJ Mesh Case

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The New Jersey Superior Court judge overseeing thousands of transvaginal mesh lawsuits filed against Ethicon Inc. has upheld the $11.1 million verdict awarded last year to the plaintiff in the proceeding’s first bellwether trial.

Judge Carol Higbee of Atlantic County Superior Court denied Ethicon’s motions for a new trial and judgment notwithstanding the verdict on July 15, noting that “there was strong evidence presented and multiple sources of evidence that in fact there were many problems with this product.” (Gross v. Gynecare Inc., Atl-L-6966-10)

“We are pleased to see this litigation moving forward,” says Bernstein Liebhard LLP, a nationwide law firm representing victims of defective drugs and medical devices.

The devices are used to treat pelvic organ prolapse (POP) and stress urinary incontinence. POP occurs when the internal structures that support the pelvic organs such as the bladder, uterus and bowel, become so weak, stretched, or broken that the organs drop from their normal position and bulge (prolapse) into the vagina.

The injuries that women are suffering from this mesh implant are severe and debilitating. The edges of the mesh/sling cut through the skin after implantation causing infection and cutting into nearby structures sometimes puncturing the bladder, bowel and uterus.

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