A few weeks ago, we found ourselves underwhelmed by the court’s Rule 702 rulings in the Covidien Hernia Mesh MDL. Today, we can say much the same thing about its summary judgment decision. In In re: Covidien Hernia Mesh Products Liability Litigation No. II, 2026 WL 1555914 (D. Mass. June 2, 2026), the
This is from the non-Dechert part of the Blog.
Over the years, the Blog has had many, many posts related to the issue of whether Pennsylvania recognized any form of strict liability in product liability actions against prescription medical products. In addition to the fact that several of the principal authors of the Blog have
As much as we liked those parts of In re DePuy Orthopaedics, Inc., Pinnacle Hip Implant Products Liability Litigation, 888 F.3d 753 (5th Cir. 2018) (applying Texas law), that overturned a half-billion dollar verdict caused by a combination of attorney misconduct and judicial lassitude, we also recognized the problematic effects of certain other Fifth Circuit rulings in that decision. While the good parts of Pinnacle Hip were good enough to win that decision a spot in our 2018 top ten cases, that decision’s adverse aspects were bad enough that it also landed on our list of 2018’s worst ten decisions. Specifically we observed:
Continue Reading Comment K, Presumptions, and Medical Device Design Defects Under Texas LawThe most serious error the court made was refusing to apply established Texas law that comment k precludes strict liability across the board. Pinnacle Hip ignored – really ignored − a half dozen prior decisions (including one of its own) on this issue. Even if there wasn’t any precedent (which there was), expanding state-law liability where the state courts have not is not the job of a federal court sitting in diversity.
We are delighted to report that we are in love. The object of our affection, named Luca, is eight weeks old and weighs 9.6 pounds. Yes, our new standard poodle puppy, trumpeted repeatedly to patient readers of these pages, is home. The couple-hundred-mile trip to pick him up was packed with excitement and anticipation
We do not care much about car racing. Sure, we have seen some parts of some races on television, had toy racecars in our remote youth, and have craned our necks to see a few fancy “street legal” versions zooming past. However, we have never attended a race in person and do not follow any
Bostic v. Ethicon, Inc., 2022 WL 952129 (E.D. Pa. March 29, 2022), is a Pennsylvania mesh case raising a host of familiar issues in a motion to dismiss context. The complaint is of the typically overpleaded (14-count) variety. Dickens was not really paid by the word, but plaintiff lawyers seem to think they might
We report, with excitement and apprehension, that we have tickets to see Hugh Jackman as Harold Hill in The Music Man next month on Broadway. The Drug and Device Law Dowager Countess blushes and giggles at the mention of Jackman, and the outing seemed a worthy one, not without apparent urgency given time’s ravages (the
We begin by introducing a new Drug and Device Little Rescue Dog. We lost the oldest of our rescued angels – a perfect soul we will miss as long as we are breathing – in the fall. Our other dog was sad and lonely, so we set out to adopt a companion for him. Our
The Drug and Device Law Daughter has told us more than once that the future will see a vast expansion of animal rights. Animals are capable of suffering, and even if they will never be accorded the exact same civil rights as people (who are, after all, also animals), surely we will find ways to
We find ourselves, once again, hungry for good news. We just canceled a trip to see dear friends outside of Glacier National Park because Montana hospitals are so overfilled with anti-vax COVID patients that anyone with any medical emergency risks being turned away. Afghanistan fell to the Taliban. And, on a more “micro” level, we
