As we have previously reported, plaintiffs have alleged that employees of Johnson & Johnson’s Ethicon unit, manufacturers of the Gynecare Prolift implant, mishandled documents related to the device. Plaintiffs recently asked the Department of Justice to launch an investigation into Ethicon’s handling of thousands of documents related to the device. Since then, other consumer advocacy groups have requested U.S. Senate investigations into the “pattern of reckless conduct” displayed by Johnson & Johnson officials.

A jury in Texas has ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay a damages award of $1.2 million to a sixty-four year old woman in the first verdict against the company over the use of its Ethicon device. The plaintiff filed a lawsuit against the pharmaceutical company when the TVT-O mesh sling implanted in her body to treat stress urinary incontinence eroded, causing severe pelvic pain and damage. Jurors ruled in favor of the plaintiff and concluded the device manufactured by the company’s Ethicon unit was defectively designed.

If you or a loved one has experienced any injury from the use of a vaginal mesh implant, please contact Stark & Stark and speak to one of the Mass Tort attorneys, free of charge, who can help assess any claims that you might have against Johnson & Johnson.