Smith & Nephew BHR Lawsuits Moving Forward in Hip Implant Litigation

Under a recent ruling, Smith & Nephew—the maker of the Birmingham Hip Resurfacing (BHR)—must continue to face serious negligence and misrepresentation claims in a multidistrict litigation (MDL) in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland.

Whitney Butcher, an attorney with the Whitley Law Firm who sits on the MDL Plaintiff’s Steering Committee, explains that “Plaintiffs generally survived [the] Defendant’s motion to dismiss in the Smith & Nephew BHR cases,” meaning hip implant victims are now able to continue pursuing their legal rights to seek justice.

U.S. District Judge Catherine Blake concluded that most of the state BHR patients’ claims – such as negligence, failure to warn, and misrepresentation – line up with federal requirements for medical devices and are therefore not preempted by federal law.

Further, according to U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulations, Smith & Nephew must properly train surgeons implanting the Birmingham Hip Resurfacing device, spread truthful information, and report adverse events related to its medical devices.

The Base of All BHR lawsuits

There are more than 200 Birmingham Hip Resurfacing lawsuits on file from over 40 states. These cases stem from serious side effects caused by the friction between the metal-on-metal hip replacement components. As the device breaks down (in many instances far too quickly), microscopic metal fragments can accumulate in the bloodstream, leading to blood poisoning, psuedotumors, and other complications that often require a revision surgery.

BHR was already recalled twice. The first incident was in 2007 for mislabeling and the second was eight years later after competitors were recalling similar devices with higher than normal failure rates.

As cases continue to unfold under this recent ruling, you should know what to expect. If you have questions about the latest MDL Smith & Nephew ruling or an existing BHR implant case, Whitley Law Firm has answers. You can speak to a highly experienced defective medical device attorney near you by calling (888) 760-9359 right now.