Wednesday, July 31, 2013

DePuy Files Summary Judgment in California ASR Case


Johnson & Johnson, DePuy Orthopaedics Inc. and their affiliated companies have moved for summary adjudication in an ASR hip implant case scheduled to be California’s first bellwether trial on October 1, 2013.

The Defendants filed their summary judgment motion in San Francisco Superior Court July 26. This was the deadline given by Judge Richard A. Kramer, who presides over the coordinated DePuy ASR hip cases in California.
 
The Plaintiff in the case is Robert Eugene Ottman. His opposition motion is due August 30. The judge has already scheduled a hearing on dispositive motions for September 13.
 
In related news, Judge Kramer has ruled that some plaintiffs who are in the consolidated action in California can add DePuy Pinnacle hip implant claims to their lawsuits. The ruling came as a result of a motion filed jointly by seven plaintiffs. DePuy recalled the metal-on-metal ASR in 2010, but has not yet recalled the metal-on-metal Pinnacle hip replacement system. All signs from the Defendants point to no recall in sight.
The two DePuy products have been under U.S. Food and Drug Administration scrutiny, primarily because of one dangerous alleged side effect called “metal poisoning,” or “metallosis.” According to the FDA, metal ions could peel off into the patient’s bloodstream when the device’s metal parts rub together. This could lead to potentially severe health problems such as tissue damage, necrosis and pseudo-tumors.
Our firm is currently investigating claims for those people who have been implanted with DePuy hip replacement devices, ASR, Pinnacle, and all other metal-on-metal hips. If you would like a free case evaluation, please contact Booth Samuels at toll free 1-866-515-8880 or at booths@pittmandutton.com.
 
 
 

 

Friday, July 19, 2013

6 Current NCAA Football Players Seek to Join O'Bannon Suit


It has been quite a week on the NCAA lawsuit front. A couple of major developments have occurred, coincidentally during the SEC Media days here in Birmingham. How all of this shakes out is yet to be determined, but the heat has obviously affected the NCAA.

The first major turn of events was that the NCAA is dropping all ties with EA Sports for one of the most popular and profitable video game of all time-NCAA College Football. The NCAA is letting their contract with EA Sports expire in June 2014 and will not be renewing it. The game is a major point of contention in the lawsuit. For more on that story, click on the link below:

http://www.sbnation.com/college-football/2013/7/17/4532348/ncaa-ea-sports-ncaa-football

The second major development was that six current NCAA football players are seeking to join the O'Bannon lawsuit. The O'Bannon lawsuit started as only seeking to redress issues former athletes faced. Last year, the complaint was amended to include current players. Pittman, Dutton & Hellums, P.C., is actively involved in this lawsuit, representing former University of Alabama player Tyrone Prothro. Judge Wilken, the presiding judge over the suit, has yet to rule on the class certification issue. For more on this story, click on the link below:

http://espn.go.com/espn/otl/story/_/id/9491249/six-current-football-players-join-ed-obannon-ncaa-lawsuit

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

BP Trying to Suspend Claim Payments

Lawyers for British Petroleum have asked United States District Judge Barbier, who is presiding over the MDL, to suspend payments to claimants because of alleged fraud. Read the story below from The Times Picayune/nola.com:

http://www.nola.com/news/gulf-oil-spill/index.ssf/2013/07/bp_asks_federal_court_to_suspe.html#incart_m-rpt-2

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Selections For Bellwether Cases Submitted in Zimmer NexGen MDL


 
Approximately 1,010 cases are pending in the Zimmer NexGen MDL 2272. People from all over the United States make up that large number, each alleging that defective components in Zimmer’s range of knee implants caused the systems to fail within a few years. This MDL was created in August 2011 and consolidated 28 filed cases. We are now getting closer, albeit still very far away, from the first bellwether trial. ‘Bellwether’ cases are intended to help all parties gauge the likely reaction of juries and are a great tool for both sides to evaluate their positions.
 
Judge Rebecca R. Pallmeyer, the presiding Judge in the NexGen MDL, ordered both sides to select cases for the bellwether hearings no later than June 20, 2013. To be eligible for early trial, a case must have been transferred to the MDL prior to January 25, 2013, and plaintiffs must have provided medically authorized ‘Fact Sheets’ by April 25, 2013.
 
Out of that group of potential cases, the court is expecting to select those slated to go to trial by February 2014. Between now and February 2014, both sides must take expert witness depositions. Judge Pallmeyer indicated that the first Zimmer NexGen knee lawsuit will be ready for trial by January 2015. However, this date could easily be pushed back as we have seen in the ASR MDL.
 
If you suspect that your knee implant is loose, it is important to visit your doctor. Your doctor will likely perform bone scans and X-rays tests to determine the viability of your implant. Pittman, Dutton & Hellums, P.C., is currently investigating claims for those people with Zimmer knee implants who have been told their knee must be revised or they have already been revised. Please contact Booth Samuels toll free at 1-866-515-8880 or by email at booths@pittmandutton.com for a free case evaluation.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Friday, July 12, 2013

PDH Files Class Action Against Madison County Clerk

Two recently filed class action lawsuits by Pittman, Dutton & Hellums, P.C., have garnered a lot of media attention the last few weeks (see my MAPCO security breach blogs from June and July for more). The latest lawsuit to receive coverage was one filed against the Circuit Clerk of Madison County Alabama, Jane Smith.


The lawsuit alleges that Madison County began charging an extra $150 for filing fees of civil court cases filed in Madison County to cover a budget shortfall in 2004. The money was supposed to be collected by the Circuit Clerk, who was and is Jane Smith, and used to help alleviate budget cuts in the district attorney's office. Nothing was wrong with this because the Clerk was instructed to do this through legislation. However, the Clerk of Court was to stop collecting this extra fee by January 1, 2006.

The problem was she never did and has been collecting the fees ever since. The money has been presumably going to the County, which they seem to have not refused.

The story behind the lawsuit has been covered by local Huntsville, Alabama reporters and journalists. See the links below for more on the story. The second link is one for a video which describes the suit in more detail than the article.

http://www.waff.com/story/22718610/class-action-lawsuit-filed-against-madison-county-circuit-clerk

http://www.wsfa.com/story/22737237/class-action-lawsuit-filed-against-madison-county-circuit-clerk

Tuesday, July 9, 2013

MAPCO Faces More Lawsuits


Three class actions have been filed in Alabama against MAPCO for alleged security breaches. Pittman, Dutton & Hellums, P.C., filed one of those suits on behalf of a Tuscaloosa resident.

Although the extent of the breach is unknown at this time, it is thought to be enormous. It may be that all 377 of MAPCO stores have been hit. The MAPCO family of stores include MAPCO Express®, MAPCO Mart®, Discount Food Mart™, Delta Express®, Fast Food & Fuel™.

Another article has been published detailing the breach and the lawsuits. Tracy Kitten, the journalist covering the story, did an excellent job: http://www.bankinfosecurity.com/mapco-express-sued-over-malware-attack-a-5894

We have reason to believe that one MAPCO location in particular, located in Rising Fawn, Georgia, off of Interstate 59, was hit by the hackers.  

The relevant dates of the security breach occurred between March 19-25, April 14-15 and April 20-21 of 2013. If you used a credit or debit card at any MAPCO location  and were injured by the MAPCO breach, please contact Booth Samuels at 1-866-515-8880 or by email at booths@pittmandutton.com 



Thursday, July 4, 2013

Chinese Drywall Deadline Monday July 8th

The registration deadline for all Chinese drywall settlements administered through Judge Fallon's MDL Court in New Orleans is Monday July 8th. All claimants who wish to participate in any of the various settlements must register their claims by this date or they will be prohibited from receiving settlement monies or remediation. Claim forms are not due at this time, but to file a claim form you must register.

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