A Rhode Island jury ordered C.R. Bard to pay $4.8 million to a Hawaiian man who suffered from severe intestinal injuries after his hernia mesh implant was installed. So far, this is the largest single verdict to have ever come out of the ongoing hernia mesh lawsuit. The plaintiff had the Ventralex Hernia Patch, a mesh device made with a plastic called polypropylene.
The jury found C.R. Bard, a medical device company that rebranded as “Bard” in 2017, liable for failing to warn patients with the Ventralex Hernia Patch of the risks involved with the product. Bard insisted that the quality of the plastic used in its medical products was safe for the human body. However, the plaintiff’s attorney refuted that claim. He told the jury that Bard switched to a cheaper, lower-quality polypropylene supplier after the 2017 acquisition.
This new verdict spells trouble for Bard in future hernia mesh cases. Currently, there are two multidistrict litigations (MDLs) for the incoming hernia mesh lawsuits against Bard to be funneled into. There’s currently a federal MDL in Ohio, and a state MDL in Rhode Island. This was the first hernia mesh case to go to trial at the state level.
A rocky future for C.R. Bard
Today, the federal Bard MDL is one of the largest mass tort MDLs in the country, with over 17,000 lawsuits. If Bard gets hit with another major verdict in the future, then it may have to agree to a global hernia mesh settlement to resolve remaining cases.
Now that we’ve seen the first major verdict in the hernia mesh lawsuit, now’s the perfect time to see if you could be next. If you or an immediate family member received a defective hernia mesh implant and had to go back to your doctor for a follow-up revision surgery to resolve medical complications, see if you qualify to join the lawsuit.