Zimmer Granted Summary Judgment In A Knee Replacement Case

Zimmer Granted Summary Judgment In A Knee Replacement Case

Introduction

In an order issued on February 4, Judge Arthur D. Spatt of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York granted summary judgment to Zimmer Inc. in a case involving its knee replacement system, finding that the plaintiff's injuries were not caused because of inadequate warnings regarding the device.

The federal judge found that the plaintiff failed to furnish sufficient evidence asserting that her implanting surgeon would have preferred a different knee replacement system had he been given enhanced warnings about the system's side-effects. The plaintiff underwent a total right knee replacement surgery on March 14, 2011, during which Zimmer's Gender Solutions Natural-Knee Flex System specifically designed for those who have hyperextension of the knee or high posterior tibial slope was used. She raised allegations about the adequacy of Zimmer’s warnings and filed a product liability lawsuit against Zimmer on February 20, 2014.

The Zimmer NexGen knee implant lawsuits were consolidated in 2011, as MDL No. 2272, In Re: Zimmer NexGen Knee Implant Products Liability Litigation, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois before Judge Rebecca R. Pallmeyer. There were reports about the plaintiffs and the defendant agreed to settle this 7-year-old litigation for an undisclosed amount.