Nearly $8 Million in Punitive Damages Added in J&J Vaginal Mesh Verdict
The vaginal mesh injury lawyers in Jacksonville at Farah & Farah recently reported that a jury in Atlantic City, New Jersey awarded $3.35 million in compensatory damages to a woman who claimed that Johnson’s and Johnson’s Gynecare Prolift mesh product was defective, that J&J knew it, and that the medical device manufacturer had failed to adequately warn about its risks.
The same jury has ordered Johnson and Johnson to pay the plaintiff an additional $7.76 million in punitive damages — making the total award some $11.1 million.
In his summation at the bellwether vaginal mesh injury trial, the attorney for the plaintiff told the jury that his client is in a “prison” of pain and that it was essential that the panel send a message to J&J and Ethicon (the unit of J&J that designed and manufactured the vaginal mesh device) that, “this can never, ever happen again, because life and health is at risk … tell them no more, no more, no more.”
The attorney for the woman tried to put the $3.35 million transvaginal mesh award into perspective when he compared it to how much J&J spends on advertising and marketing for its products each year. An expert at the trial testified that the medical device giant spent about $57 million per day in 2012.
A spokeswoman for Johnson & Johnson informed Bloomberg News via email that the company plans to appeal both the compensatory and the punitive damage verdicts. “The punitive damage award is unsupported by the evidence presented at trial,” the spokeswoman said. “Ethicon acted appropriately in the research, development, and marketing of the Prolift.”
If you are suffering from an injury due to a defective mesh implant, contact the law firm of Farah & Farah immediately. We can explain what your legal options are and how we can help you and your family. Calls us at (800) 533-3555 or contact us online for a free, no-obligation review of your case.
