Disqualified Expert May Not Present Lay Testimony in Hip Case, Calif. Judge Rules

SAN DIEGO — A California federal judge has denied a plaintiff’s motion to reopen discovery for the limited purpose of disclosing Dr. Stephen Li, whose expert testimony had already been disqualified, as a fact witness in her lawsuit against DePuy Orthopaedics Inc. and Johnson & Johnson involving their Pinnacle hip system.

In a Nov. 8 order, Judge Janis Sammartino of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California explained that allowing Dr. Li to present lay testimony could confuse the jury.

Barbara Coy alleges she suffered injuries after being implanted with the Pinnacle metal-on-metal hip system. Beginning …