Smith & Nephew Metal-on-Metal Hip Implant Cases May be Headed for MDL

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Plaintiffs have moved to establish a consolidated docket for more than 30 federal lawsuits alleging injury caused by a metal-on-metal hip implant system manufactured by Smith & Nephew.

In a Feb. 1 petition filed with the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation, the plaintiffs contend that pretrial coordination before a single judge in Maryland would facilitate resolution of the claims, which allege premature failure of Smith & Nephew’s Birmingham Hip Resurfacing(BHR) and R3 metal-on-metal liner devices.

According to the petition, as many as 31 cases are pending in 22 different federal district courts and dozens are likely to …