First Bard Avaulta Transvaginal Mesh Lawsuit Begins Again

The first of four bellwether trials of the C.R. Bard transvaginal mesh lawsuits began for the second time on Monday, July 29, in the U.S. District Court in the Southern District of West Virginia.  The initial trial in Cisson v. C.R. Bard Inc. was declared a mistrial on July 10, after an expert witness gave improper testimony.  The Charleston Daily Mail reported that trial is now underway again before a new jury.

The plaintiffs, Donna and Dan Cisson, a public health nurse from Georgia and her husband, allege that the Avaulta Plus device Donna had implanted in 2009 was defective.  According to court documents, Donna was required to undergo multiple surgeries in an attempt to remove the defective Avaulta implant.  She alleges she suffered serious complications as a result of the surgeries, including bladder spasms, bleeding, and pain during intercourse.

Failure To Warn

The Cissons allege that Bard executives were aware of the potential dangers and complications associated with its Avaulta products, but continued to market the devices without proper warnings.  Unsealed court documents reveal allegations that Bard executives were warned that the material used in the Avaulta Plus and the company’s other transvaginal mesh products was not fit for use in humans, but failed to pull the Avaulta products from the market or warn doctors and patients about the design flaw.

Transvaginal Mesh Multi-District Litigation

This case is the first of some 20,000 transvaginal mesh cases pending in front of federal Judge Joseph Goodwin in West Virginia.  The judge has grouped the cases according to the model implanted and the condition the implant was intended to address.

The Cisson case is the first of the initial group of cases (MDL No. 2187) – all concerning C.R. Bard’s Avaulta Plus or Avaulta Solo polypropylene mesh devices implanted to treat pelvic organ prolapse – to be heard in what has been described as the largest multi-district litigation in history.  The Court plans to try the four cases in this group back to back.

Four additional groups of cases are pending in front of Judge Goodwin, including actions against Ethicon Inc. (a division of Johnson & Johnson), American Medical Systems Inc., and Boston Scientific Corp.

The FDA first issued health warnings regarding transvaginal mesh implants in 2008.  Since then, over 3,770 cases have been filed against C.R. Bard, one of the largest manufacturers of the devices.

Injured by Transvaginal Mesh? Free Consultation.

Our transvaginal mesh lawyers represent women nationwide who have suffered injuries from vaginal mesh implants. If you or a loved one suffered vaginal mesh injuries, you may have a legal right to financial compensation. For a free and confidential consultation about your possible transvaginal mesh lawsuit, please fill out the form to the right or call (866) 981-4800.

Women Representing Women

Ms. A. J. De Bartolomeo, a partner at Gibbs Law Group, represents women injured after using transvaginal mesh as well as Mirena and NuvaRing birth control products, and serves on the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committees for the Yaz and Yasmin Birth Control, Actos, and Pradaxa lawsuits. Our personal injury attorneys have also represented those injured by Medtronic medical devices, Sprint Fidelis leads, SSRIs, and GranuFlo. We have recovered settlements worth hundreds of millions for our clients.

Our law firm has decades of experience successfully representing people injured by some of the nation’s largest and most powerful corporations. Our attorneys pride themselves on being there for our clients at every stage of the litigation from intake through verdict or settlement.