J&J Lawsuit for DePuy Hip Failure: 5 Things You Need to Know

Posted by Pritzker Law Firm on May 22, 2012 in Product Liability | 0 comments

 Attorney Fred Pritzker

Our law firm has filed lawsuits against DePuy Orthopaedics, Inc. (DePuy) and Johnson & Johnson (J&J), owner of DePuy. These lawsuits seek compensation for patients who had a DePuy ASR XL Acetabular Hip System implanted in their bodies.

5 Things You Need to Know

1. You May Only Have Until August 2012 to File a Lawsuit against DePuy and J&J: The DePuy ASR XL Acetabular Hip System implants were recalled in August of 2010. In many states the statute of limitations for product liability cases is 2 years. This means that many patients who had this product implanted in their bodies will lose their right to sue DePuy (J&J) in August of 2012.
2. Filing a Claim with Broadside does not Protect Your Legal Rights: To get reimbursed for certain medical expenses, DePuy wanted you to sign a medical form and send it to Broadside. Filing a claim with this company is not the same thing as filing a DePuy lawsuit in state or federal court. If you have not filed a lawsuit in a court of law, you may lose your right to do so. Contact attorney David Szerlag and me now.
3. Revision Surgery and Its Aftermath are “Injuries” for Lawsuit Purposes: Your DePuy ASR should not have failed, requiring you to have hip  revision surgery (your DePuy ASR surgically removed). Therefore, you have the right to seek compensation for the pain and emotional distress you suffered before, during and after surgery. You , like many of our clients, may have continued pain after surgery, problems walking and a diminished quality of life.  Contact David Szerlag and me for a free consultation about your injuries.
4. You May Have a Claim Even if You Have No Apparent Problems: The clock is ticking. In a few months you may not be able to sue DePuy and J&J. Even if you are not in pain, the metal cup on your DePuy hip implant may be wearing away, causing chromium and cobalt poisoning. The levels of chromium and cobalt ions in your body may eventually cause tissue around the hip implant to die. Our clients are reporting increasingly high levels of chromium and cobalt that will eventually lead to the need for revision surgery.  Contact us today before you lose your rights.
5. The DePuy ASR Lawsuits are in multidistrict litigation (MDL): The DePuy ASR XL Acetabular Hip System cases were consolidated in MDL in July of 2010, at which time they were transferred to the Northern District of Ohio. MDL is a consolidation of pretrial procedures only and is not a J&J hip class action lawsuit.  MDL allows all of the people suing (called plaintiffs) to benefit from a collective effort to gather evidence and try issues of law.

Attorneys Fred Pritzker and David Szerlag represent J&J hip patients throughout the United States in lawsuits involving revision surgery and ion poisoning. Fred Pritzker has offices in Minneapolis, MN, and David Szerlag has offices in Boston, Massachusetts, and Providence, Rhode Island.

Banzai Pool Slide Personal Injury and Wrongful Death Prompts Recall

Posted by Pritzker Law Firm on May 11, 2012 in Product Liability | 0 comments

Victims and families have suffered because recalled Banzai slide pools are defective. Call for your free consultation today: 1-888-377-8900.

Banzai pool slides sold at Wal-Mart and Toys R Us have been recalled after reports of serious personal injury and wrongful death. The reported cases happened when the victims fractured their necks going down a Banzai in-ground pool water slide that had been placed over the concrete edge of a pool. The victims, listed below, hit their heads at the bottom of the slide because it was partially deflated:

• A 24-year-old man from Springfield, MO became a quadriplegic
• A woman from Allentown, PA broke her neck
• A 29-year-old mother from Colorado died in Andover, MA

An investigation into the injuries and death found two design defects in the recalled Banzai pool slide: 1) it can deflate, allowing the user to hit the ground underneath the slide (what happened to the three victims above); and 2) it is unstable and can topple over in both still and windy conditions. In addition, the recalled Banzai pool slides carries inadequate warnings and instructions. These findings can be used in a personal injury or wrongful death lawsuit against the manufacturer.

Banzai Pool Slide Recall Information

The Banzai pool slide recall involves about 21,000 inflatable pool water slides. The recalled Banzai in-ground pool water slides are designed for use with in-ground pools. The vinyl slides have a blue base, yellow sliding mat and an arch going over the top of the slide. By connecting a hose to the top of the slide, water can be sprayed on its downward slope. The words ‘Banzai Splash’ are printed in a circular blue, orange and white logo, shaped like a wave on either side of the slide.

The recalled slides, which were manufactured in China by Manley Toys, Ltd, were sold at Walmart and Toys R Us nationwide from January 2005 through June 2009 for about $250. The recalled slides have the barcode number 2675315734 and model number 15734. Both the barcode and model number appear on the original packaging but are not on the actual slide.

Metal Hip Lawsuit

Posted by Pritzker Law Firm on Apr 25, 2012 in Product Liability | 0 comments

by Attorney Fred Pritzker

Metal hip lawsuit help: 1-888-377-8900 (toll free).

I and attorney David Szerlag are representing several patients who had metal-on-metal hip replacements, specifically DePuy ASR™ XL Acetabular System. We are representing victims of these defective metal-on-metal hip replacement implants throughout the United States, and have filed metal hip lawsuits in several states.

Our clients have had or will be having hip revision surgery due to one or more of the following problems:

• Raised blood cobalt and chromium ions (chromium and cobalt poisoning)
• Loosening of metal hip implant components
• Hip fracture
• Soft tissue reactions around the hip
• Pain
• Gait issues (problems walking)

Metal Hip Lawsuit Questions and Answers

What kind of compensation will I be able to recover?

In most cases, you will be able to recover amounts for medical expenses (including expected future expenses), lost income (including future lost income), pain and suffering (includes physical pain, emotional distress, disability, loss of quality of life, etc.), and other damages specific to your case. We will look at your medical history, your work history, your hobbies and other aspects of your life to come up with a compensation package for you.

Can I file a lawsuit even if I don’t need hip revision surgery?

Yes, depending on the facts of your case you may have a claim against Johnson & Johnson (DePuy) or another manufacturer. You will need to contact me or David to discuss your case, but our medical experts are convinced that many people who had metal-on-metal hip replacements will have health issues resulting in future medical expenses. Because of this, all metal-on-metal hip implant patients should be carefully monitored, an expense that the patient should not have to bear.

How much will I need to pay your law firm?

You will not have to pay any fees up front. We are not paid unless we win your case, in which case we are paid a percentage of your recovery.

We are a national law firm. States where we have represented clients: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota and Wisconsin.

Cobalt Poisoning from a DePuy Artificial Hip

Posted by Pritzker Law Firm on Feb 14, 2012 in Product Liability | 0 comments

Attorney David Szerlag is urging DePuy hip patients to contact him before it is too late to file a lawsuit.

Attorney David Szerlag of our law firm is one of our lead attorneys for our cobalt poisoning cases. He and our litigation team have filed lawsuits on behalf of clients who got cobalt poisoning from a DePuy ASR™ XL Acetabular System artificial hip.  They are also investigating possible cobalt poisoning from other manufacturers of metal-on-metal artificial hips.

Cobalt poisoning from an artificial hip is possible because the metal-on-metal hip replacements have a cobalt alloy in them. When the metal parts rub together, small particles of cobalt (and chromium) can come off. The build up of cobalt can cause cobalt poisoning, also referred to as cobalt toxicity.

Many DePuy ASR hip patients have had hip revision surgery to replace the DePuy hip with another artificial hip, and many more patients need to have this done. What we are finding is that patients who wait too long to have revision surgery done may be harmed both physically and legally. The physical harm is due to the increased harm to the body as the cobalt levels rise. If patients wait too long, they may have permanent damage, including vision loss, hearing loss and necrosis (death) of the tissue around the implant.

Legally, patients have a limited amount of time to pursue a lawsuit against DePuy Orthaepedics, Inc. and others. Since the DePuy ASR hips were recalled in 2010, many lawsuits have been filed. You need to contact Attorney David Szerlag for a free consultation before it is too late.

If you have any of the symptoms below, you need to contact our law firm:

Pain (by the time there is pain, tissue may already be dead)
Visual impairment (in some cases, blindness)
Cardiomyopathy (possible heart failure)
Cognitive impairment (memory loss, slow cognition)
Hearing loss (tinnitus, deafness)
Diminished coordination
Hypothyroidism
Headaches
Irritability
Anxiety
Rashes
Hip creaking
Hand tremor
Lack of energy (listlessness)

Attorneys have filed DePuy Hip Lawsuits in Minnesota

Posted by Pritzker Law Firm on Feb 9, 2012 in Product Liability | 1 comment

Attorneys Fred Pritzker and David Szerlag have filed lawsuits on behalf of Minnesota residents with DePuy ASR XL Acetabular Hip System hip implants.  Our clients had dangerous levels of cobalt and/or chromium (alloys in the DePuy ASR hip implants) in their blood. If the cobalt and chromium poisoning is not addressed quickly enough, tissue around the implant may die, causing permanent disability. This is called tissue necrosis, and it is best to have revision surgery before this happens.

Attorney David Szerlag is urging DePuy hip patients to contact him before it is too late to file a lawsuit.

What our attorneys are seeing with our clients who have not had their DePuy ASR hips removed is that the metal levels, both chromium and cobalt continue to rise.  What this means is not particularly clear as there has been little research done; however, high levels of these metals have been known to cause vision problems, rashes, even dementia.  More and more doctors are recommending to their patients that, if their metal levels continue to rise, the recalled hip should be removed sooner rather than later, even without pain or other symptoms.

We recommend that individuals with abnormal or high cobalt and/or chromium levels contact their doctors for a more detailed discussion about the changes of these metals and call us for a free consultation to be sure that their legal rights against Depuy are protected in the event they need future treatment.  Due to the time that has past since the recall notice, many individuals will lose any right to future damages if they fail to file a claim soon.

You should contact our attorneys about a DePuy lawsuit HERE. The attorney consultation is free, and if you hire our law firm, we are not paid unless you win.

Our attorneys are available to represent clients in DePuy hip lawsuits throughout Minnesota, including Albert Lea, Alexandria, Anoka, Apple Valley, Austin, Bemidji, Blaine, Bloomington, Blue Earth, Brainerd, Buffalo, Burnsville, Cambridge, Cannon Falls, Chanhassen, Circle Pines, Cloquet, Coon Rapids, Crosby, Detroit Lakes, Duluth, Eagan, Edina, Eden Prairie, Elk River, Fairmont, Faribault, Fergus Falls, Frazee, Fridley, Glencoe, Grand Rapids, Hastings, Hinckley, Hopkins, Hutchinson, Litchfield, Little Falls, Mankato, Maple Grove, Maplewood, Marshall, Minneapolis, Monticello, Mora, Morris, New Ulm, Northfield, North Oaks, Otsego, Owatonna, Plymouth, Red Wing, Robbinsdale, Rochester, Roseville, Saint Cloud, St. Paul, Shakopee, Spring Lake Park, Stillwater, Thief River Falls, Virginia, Waconia, Winona, Waseca, Woodbury, Wayzata, Worthington, Willmar and Wyoming.

Rhode Island Attorney Filing DePuy Hip Lawsuits Throughout the U.S.

Posted by Pritzker Law Firm on Feb 8, 2012 in Product Liability | 0 comments

Rhode Island Attorney David Szerlag is representing DePuy artificial hip patients.

Your DePuy ASR™ XL Acetabular System may be poisoning your body with cobalt and chromium, the alloys used to make the metal-on-metal hips that were recalled in 2010.  Attorneys Fred Pritzker and David Szerlag are representing people just like you who had hip replacement surgery thinking the hip implant would last a lifetime. Many of our clients have had to have revision surgery to replace the DePuy ASR hip. Many more are facing having to have that done in the near future.

Attorney David Szerlag grew up in Rhode Island and now travels the country representing people injured by defective medical products. He is available for a free consultation to Rhode Island residents who have questions about their DePuy ASR hip implant.

• David Szerlag, our lead attorney for our DePuy hip lawsuit cases, is involved in getting DePuy hip lawsuits through multidistrict litigation (MDL), a process like a class action lawsuit. The purpose of the MDL is to expedite the settlement process by consolidating the pretrial procedures.
• If you hire our law firm, you will not have to pay any upfront fees, and we are not paid unless you win.
• David’s experience includes a leading role on an MDL panel that resulted in winning tens of millions of dollars for people injured by another medical product.

Orthopedic surgeons in Rhode Island who used the DePuy ASR hip were unaware of the risk of cobalt and chromium poisoning that can result in tissue necrosis.  You should contact Attorney David Szerlag here about a lawsuit against De0Puy Orthopaedics, Inc. and Johnson & Johonson (DePuy’s parent company) and then contact your orthopedic surgeon for additional testing and follow up.

David Szerlag represents injured people throughout Rhode Island: