In previous news regarding the status of the ongoing lawsuits filed against DePuy Orthopaedics for manufacturing the defective ASR XL Acetabular System and ASR Hip Resurfacing System, a Multidistrict Litigation or MDL was proposed. A hearing was scheduled on November 18 of this year to hear five motions that petitions to consolidate the cases under one federal judge. The hearing took place in Durham, North Carolina.

During the hearing, the five plaintiffs, most of which were class action groups, and DePuy contradicted as to what federal district court the MDL should take place in. Some plaintiffs wanted the consolidation to occur in Chicago because that was were they lived. Others preferred New Orleans due to its geographic centrality, a number wanted to have it proceed in northern California where designers of the ASRs work. DePuy however, favors Warsaw, Indiana because that's where the company's headquarters is located.

Last week, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation finally decided to appoint the cases to the Northern District Court judge, Judge David A. Katz. The Panel expressed their support for the judge stating that Judge Katz is an experienced transferee judge.

The Panel also justified their decision in a couple of reasons saying that first, there were no current lawsuits coming from that location. Secondly, they expressed that, “Centralization…in the Northern District of Ohio will serve the convenience of parties and witnesses and promote the just and efficient conduct of the litigation.” Third, “Centralization…will eliminate duplicative discovery, prevent inconsistent pretrial rulings on discovery and other issues, and conserve the resources of the parties, their counsel and the judiciary,” says the Panel. Consolidation of these cases aims to acquire efficient pretrial rulings and gain manageable access to discovery.

Information about the ongoing case against the orthopedic manufacturer is readily available at the DePuy hip replacement lawsuit site. If you are one of the recipients of the recalled ASR products, it is best to consult with a lawyer to discuss your legal options in recovering compensation for your losses.