Tennessee Injury Lawyer Blog

The past few years have been very hard for patients effected by metal on metal hips. There have been hundreds of lawsuits filed in relation to the DePuy Hip and the Stryker Metal hip recalls. In fact the Stryker Rejuvenate and ABG II hip implants have been recalled. It is estimated that 500,000 patients throughout the United States have received metallic hip implants.

According to some experts the risk of these metal on metal hip implants is that some of the devices can rapidly begin to wear. When this happens high volumes of metallic debri can be absored in the patients body which can create an inflammatory reaction that results in pain in the groin and death of tissue in the hip join area. It can also call a loss of surrounding bone.

Recently, one of the first DePuy case went to trial. In that case the jury found for the plaintiff and awarded him 8.3 millions dollars in damages. Recently, I was interviewed about this defective hip case. You can watch the interview below:

Our Tennessee Defective Hip Lawyers are working with several families throughout the state who have had failure of the metal on metal hip. These cases can be devastating to not allow the patient but to the entire family. To undergo such a painful and dangerous surgery will obviously create a significant hardship

Continue reading "Hip Replacment Recalls Continue in Tennessee and Throughout the Country" »

The number of lawsuits being filed related to the medical product GranuFlo and NaturaLyte are on the rise. These products are used in the during dialyisis treatment for the purpose creating bicarbonates in the blood. This is necessary for any dialysis treatment but unfortunately it is believed that GranuFlo may have dangerous side effects. More specifically, the product may create a bicarbonate overdose which can cause stroke, heart attack and death.

Recently, Tennessee Trial Attorney Jim Higgins was interviewed with regard to this product and some recently filed cases. You can watch the interview below:

As these cases move through the court system we hope to obtain more answers as to how these tragic injuries and death can be prevented in the future.

Continue reading "Tennessee Attorney Discusses New GranuFlo Case" »

Tennessee teenagers and teenagers all across the United States are involved in sports such as football each day. According to the Center for Disease Control, there are 300,000 sports-related concussions in the United States each year; most occur in contact sports, such as football, soccer, baseball, boxing and hockey. Also, in football, brain injuries account for sixty-five to eighty-five percent of fatalities. Football related concussions can lead to serious and even life-altering brain injuries or even death for teenagers all across the country. If you or someone you love has suffered a brain injury after playing a contact sport such as football, it is highly recommended that you speak with a Tennessee products liability lawyer as soon as possible. They will work with you and make sure you get the compensation you may be entitled to for the injuries you or your family members have suffered.

In this case, Rhett Ridolfi's family filed a lawsuit against helmet maker Riddell and several high school administrators and football coaches after Ridolfi suffered a concussion in a Trinidad High School football practice. He wasn't immediately taken to the hospital and now has severe brain damage, as well as paralysis on his left side. The jury found that Riddell was negligent in failing to warn people wearing its helmets about concussion dangers. The jury assessed twenty-seven percent of the fault for Rhett Ridolfi's injuries, making the company responsible for paying $3.1 million of the damages.

The jury awarded $11.5 million total in the lawsuit to Ridolfi’s family. The ruling comes as the company faces a similar lawsuit in Los Angeles, plus a complaint by thousands of former NFL players against the league and Riddell. Riddell said it planned to appeal the verdict but was pleased that jurors rejected allegations regarding helmet design defects."While disappointed in the jury's decision not to fully exonerate Riddell, we are pleased the jury determined that Riddell's helmet was not defective in any way," the company said in a statement. It said it believes it designs and manufactures the most protective football headgear for athletes.

Three people reached confidential settlements before Saturday's verdict, but two coaches were still defendants at the trial. In October, another jury found Riddell wasn't responsible for an injury to a high school football player who had suffered a stroke after a practice.

Continue reading "Jury awards $11.5M to family in helmet lawsuit" »

An estimated half a million people in the United States use dialysis, a service that cleans their blood of toxins when their kidneys are failing to work the way they should. There are dialysis centers all over the country, and dialysis patients generally receive this service on a regular schedule that is dependent upon the type of dialysis that they receive and the extent of their renal damage. When patients in Tennessee and across the country use dialysis, they go into these medical centers expecting that the medical professionals are properly trained to give them the correct dosages of medication and to operate the necessary equipment. However, some companies that manufacture dialysis medications fail to warn both doctors and patients when they are dangers and unnecessary risks involved with the medication. This can lead to further injury for patients and even wrongful death. Unfortunately, our Tennessee Granuflo Lawyers have seen several of these cases.

According to a recent lawsuit, in February of 2013, Tanzella Leary claimed that the use of NaturaLyte and/or GranuFlo caused the wrongful death of her husband Darian Leary .On February 28, 2011, Mr. Leary suffered adverse cardiovascular events that led to his death. Mrs. Leary claims that Fresenius Medical Care manufactured and sold dangerous dialysis products, NaturaLyte and GranuFlo that contributed to her husband’s death. Mr. Leary suffered from metabolic alkalosis following a dialysis treatment, a condition that led to his death.
Mrs. Leary alleges Fresenius had been aware of the dangers posed by improper dosage of GranuFlo and NaturaLyte, but failed to disclose these dangers to physicians or the public. The company did release an internal memo that warned of the dangers posed by the products. The FDA did not become aware of concerns about the product risks until the memo was leaked in 2011. Fresenius did not inform other dialysis centers that used GranuFlo and NaturaLyte products about the potentially fatal risk caused by improper dosage.

Mrs. Leary alleges that the physicians who treated her late husband had no reason to suspect that his injuries were linked to GranuFlo or NaturaLyte until the FDA issued a Class I recall of the products in March 2012. The FDA only issues Class I recalls in events that pose the greatest danger to public health. She is seeking damages for all expenses related to her husband’s death, including funeral expenses, medical expenses and emotional distress. She is also seeking punitive damages.

Continue reading "Plaintiff Blames Fresenius for Husband’s Wrongful Death in Granuflo Lawsuit" »

In Tennessee and all across the United States, people put their loved ones in nursing homes every day, expecting that they will be well cared for. However, many patients suffer from abuse, negligent, and in some cases patients even die as a result of medical malpractice and negligence. Tennessee Wrongful Death lawsuits can be filed for a variety of reasons, including but not limited to: motorcycle or car accidents, defective products, an occupational hazard or medical malpractice or negligence. Medical malpractice is one of the most common causes for wrongful death in the United States. About 98, 000 Americans have died a wrongful death due to medical malpractice and 90, 000 of these cases filed for wrongful death claims.

According to this Nursing Home Neglect lawsuit, on December 13, 2011, a woman died after suffering a subdural and subarachnoid hematoma. Although devastated at her loss, it was a situation the family could understand. Sadly, this family was lied to, although the real facts were not revealed until they were watching the evening news. The newscaster announced that the coroner’s office ruled the cause of death a homicide because she was assaulted by an Alzheimer’s patient.
The family went to the nursing home seeking answers following the news report. They were avoided by staff members. The victim’s son doesn’t blame the other resident, but he was shocked by the lies and could not believe the lack of supervision provided by the nursing home staff. The altercation happened in the dining room, where no supervision was present.

According to the case, the family originally sought an apology and $30,000 to cover the woman’s hospital bills; however the nursing home refused to accept accountability. Now the facility is facing a wrongful death lawsuit. An inspection in January 2011 cited the nursing home for failure to provide adequate supervision to prevent a fall in the Alzheimer’s unit. In response the nursing home submitted a plan of correction and promised not to leave Alzheimer’s residents unsupervised in the dining room. The plan was never effectively implemented.

Continue reading "Wrongful Death Lawsuit in Death of Nursing Home Resident" »

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the average rate that a pedestrian is killed in an accident is one pedestrian related death every two hours. The rate a pedestrian is injured is every eight minutes. Also, pedestrians are 1.5 times more likely than passenger vehicle occupants to be killed in a car crash on each trip. If you or someone you know has been involved in a pedestrian related car accident and been injured or died, then you should speak to a Tennessee pedestrian car accident and personal injury lawyer as soon as possible. They will hear your case and see to it that you receive the compensation you need for what you have suffered.

In this case, comedian Russell Brand is being sued for running over a pedestrian with his car in an accident that took place in January 2012. The victim Victor Sneed is asking for $185,000 in damages in a new lawsuit filed against the actor, citing bodily injuries to his hand, arm and hip after a run-in with Brand. Snide previously sued Russell in October 2012 for $25,000 in the same accident, but appears to have upped his claim since then. In January, Brand shot back at Sneed, stating that injuries incurred from the accident were the "direct, proximate and sole result" of his own "physical bodily condition and constitutional composition," according to court documents.

The CDC also reports that, pedestrians can help prevent injuries and even death from car accidents if they are especially careful at intersections, where drivers may fail to yield the right-of-way to pedestrians while turning onto another street, if they crease their visibility at night by carrying a flashlight when walking and by wearing retro-reflective clothing, and finally if whenever it is possible, pedestrians should cross the street at a designated crosswalk. It is much safer to walk on a sidewalk, but if pedestrians must walk in the street, they should walk facing traffic.

Continue reading "Pedestrian in Car Accident Asking For $185,000 in Damages in Russell Brand Lawsuit" »

The Stryker hip metal on metal implant recall has affected many patients and their loved ones. These patients who live all across the country and even in Tennessee have suffered with pain, squeaking, popping, and various other complications due to the defective medical devices. If you or someone you care about has experienced these or other problems after receiving a medical implant or device, then you are encourage to contact a Tennessee personal injury and defective medical device lawyer right away. They can hear your claim and help you determine the compensation you may be entitled to based on your claim and your injuries.

According to this lawsuit, Darlene Gray received her Trident hip replacement device in August, 2005, and began experiencing complications from her hip a short time later, including popping, squeaking, and ongoing pain. Gray eventually underwent hip revision surgery to remove and replace the faulty implant.

Judge Tanya W. Pratt denied the defendant’s request to dismiss the case. According to Gray’s initial complaint, Stryker Corp. was listed as the only defendant. The plaintiff amended her original complaint to include Howmedica Osteoncics Corp., which also conducts business as Stryker Orthopedics Inc. Howmedica has been named on other lawsuits involving the Trident hip implant.

Howmedica stated in their request that Gray’s allegations are barred by the Medical Device Act. This act preempts claims against class III devices, like the Trident hip replacement listed in Gray’s lawsuit. Class III devices are subject to a vigorous premarket approval process, a fact that is not included in Gray’s amended complaint.

Howmedica also asserts in their request for dismissal that Gray did not specify in her complaint whether her injuries were a result of manufacturing defect or physician error. She did not specifically list the components of the device that led to her injuries. The defendant argued that Gray also failed to offer details of the FDA’s findings on the device or the Stryker Trident recall that was issued in 2008.

Judge Pratt, stated, however that Gray sufficiently alleged a manufacturing defect to avoid Medical Device Act preemption. Although Gray made no specific allegations of federal law violations, Judge Pratt determined that the plaintiff did clearly allege that complications were due to manufacturing defect and lack of quality control in the manufacturing process. Judge Pratt explains that Gray’s complaint “puts defendants on notice that her claims are premised upon allegations that some federal law or regulation was violated.”
Judge Pratt also states in her decision that Gray has shown in her complaint that the Stryker Trident recall was based on the FDA’s findings that the device was not manufactured properly.

Continue reading "Judge Rejects Defendant’s Argument in Stryker Hip Implant Lawsuit" »

Tennessee residents and people all across the United States have heard about the Stryker hip implant recall from the news, television, the internet or some other source. Many people have also been personally affected by these hip implants and may have needed additional surgery to replace the defective hip implant. Hip implants and other types of medical devices like them are typically needed for people who suffer from arthritis or massive bone fractures.

In this case, Richard Lynn Torbett claims that after receiving the Rejuvenate hip device, he suffered serious injuries, which required him to need a revision surgery in order to correct these problems. During the surgery, his doctors discovered that he had a deep pocket of swelling around his joint. He also had a large amount of fluid swelling around the joint, and finally, had fretting and corrosion around the joint as well. The release of cobalt and chromium from the fretting and corrosion also caused him to suffer damage to tissue around the medical device and elevated blood serum levels of cobalt and chromium. He will continue to need medical treatments, rehabilitation, and medicine because of these injuries.

He seeks to hold Stryker Orthopedics liable for his medical expenses, pain, and suffering, and seeks in excess of $75,000 in damages.

The Stryker Company released the Rejuvenate hip implant in February 2009. Stryker claimed that the titanium alloy used in the device was stronger than other titanium alloys, and had been tested and proven to resist the effects of fretting and corrosion.
The device was also marketed as providing options that enhanced stability and intra-operative flexibility, providing surgeons with more options to better personalize the implant to a patient’s unique anatomy.

In April 2012, Stryker released an urgent safety notice to surgeons and hospitals in the United States. In the notice, the company stated that it had received reports of premature Rejuvenate device failure because of heavy metal contamination. The notice specifically mentioned failures occurring at the neck junction between the two-part neck and stem, due to fretting and corrosion. This was exactly the same fretting and corrosion that Stryker had warranted would not occur because of the Rejuvenate design and composition.

Stryker stated that these issues could cause tissue necrosis (tissue death), metallosis, adverse soft tissue reactions, and the formation of pseudotumors (deep pockets of swelling). In July 2012, the company issued a voluntary Stryker hip replacement recall of all Rejuvenate and ABG II modular stems, stating the components had been linked to reports of premature failure due to heavy metal fretting and corrosion.

Many medical devices and implants like the Stryker hip implants are designed properly and are very effective and beneficial to patients in helping them to lead fulfilling and active lives. However, sometimes medical devices do have defectives and problems. When this occurs, it is necessary to hold the company responsible for any design defectives that may have caused the problems as well as their failure to properly warn doctors and patients about the potential risks involved. It is important to hold them accountable for any negligence on their part.

Continue reading "Man Files New Stryker Rejuvenate Lawsuit" »

When tort reform was passed in Tennessee a couple of years ago the big selling point was that it would stop "frivolous lawsuits" . This was a great selling point but it was not true. Tort reform does nothing to stop bad lawsuits it only impacts the most tragic cases. The greatest current example of the real impact of Tennessee Tort Reform can be seen in the current meningitis cases pending in Tennessee.

As these cases move forward it appears that these companies placed profits over the public safety. We have serveral of theses cases and the impact of the negligent actions has been devastating for our clients. One recent case filed in Tennessee involves a man who lost his wife after she was infected with the tainted steroid. The husband has lou gehrig disease and was completely dependent on his wife for care. This is the type of case that will be impacted by the $750,000.00 cap tort reform impacts. I guess the Tennessee legislature thinks this is a frivolous lawsuit.

I was recently interviewed about this challenge to tort reform. You can watch the interview below:

Continue reading "Tort Reform Challenge to Tennessee Meningitis Cases" »

Tennessee residents and people all across the United States have heard about the Stryker hip implant recall from the news, television, the internet or some other source. Many people have also been personally affected by these hip implants and may have needed additional surgery to replace the defective hip implant. If you or someone you care about has suffered pain and injuries after having a Stryker hip implant surgery, then it is important that you speak to a Tennessee Stryker hip implant recall and personal injury lawyer right away about your claim. They will hear your case and work with you to make sure you get the compensation you need for your injuries.

According to news reports, over eighty lawsuits have been filed in Bergen County against Stryker Orthopedics by patients claiming that the Mahwah-based medical device maker sold them a defective hip implant that was later recalled from the market. These lawsuits could become the biggest mass-tort litigations in the county after plaintiffs’ attorneys from across the country notified a judge in Hackensack in February that hundreds of more lawsuits are on the way.

The first lawsuit against Stryker was filed last summer by a sixty-six year-old woman who alleged that she replaced her right hip with Stryker’s device known as Rejuvenate, based on a promise that it would last for decades. The device failed within months, however, causing severe pain to the woman and requiring her to undergo several surgeries, according to the lawsuit’s claims. Stryker voluntarily recalled the product in July 2012 “due to potential risks.”

The patients in other lawsuits have all experienced muscle, nerve and bone damage as the metallic components of the device rub against each other, causing metallic elements to be released into the body and be absorbed into the blood stream and neighboring tissue, according to a statement made in one of the lawsuits. The devices were sold to these patients on the promise that they would last anywhere from twenty years to a lifetime. In the case of all the patients, however, the devices failed in less than two years.

We have assisted clients in multiple Depuy Hip Recall Claims in Tennessee and it appears these cases may be very similar. If you believe you have been impacted by the Stryker Hip Recall don't panic. The first thing you should do is contact your doctor. Not everyone is having problems from this implant. I would also recommend you contact this office. It is important to remember that certain time limitations apply to all cases and Tennessee has some of the shortest statute of limitations in the country. In fact, the statute of limitations in Tennessee can be as short as one year on some of these cases, however, than can be some limited exceptions to this time constraint. If you have been a victim of a defective hip you may be entitled to recover the costs of any future surgery, lost wages, pain, suffering and other economic and non-economic damages under Tennessee Product Liability Laws.

Continue reading "Mahwah-based Stryker Orthopaedics faces lawsuit over hip implants" »

Famous country music star Leann Rimes has filed a dental malpractice lawsuit alleging that her dentist did a bad job when he tried to correct her TMJ problems. The malpractice complaint alleges that as a result of the poor work she has had a tooth extraction, nine root canals and many other dental unpleasantness. So how will this case proceed? Well what we usually see in a Tennessee Medical Malpractice Case like this is a battle of the experts. Ms. Rimes experts will discuss what they believe would have been the appropriate path to treat her. Perhaps start with conservative care. They will have to testify that if different treatment would have been provided then the outcome would have been much better.

To the contrary, the dentist will likely find an expert that will say the treatment was fine but it was just an unfortunate bad outcome. They will likely say that Ms. Rime's problems are related to her own genetic problems. After all, she had problems already or she would not have sought treatment in the first place. They will also parade all of the informed consent forms that she signed (but probably never read because no one does) and say that they told her there were no guarantees.

Recently, I was interviewed about this case. You can watch the interview below:

Continue reading "Leann Rimes Files Dental Malpractice Suit" »

Our Tennessee Auto Accident Lawyers have handled all sorts of cases over the past 20 years. However, the rise of cases resulting from people texting and driving is border line epidemic. We recently spoke about this problem on TN mornings:

As more evidence of the problem you can look at the government statistics below:

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the percentage of drivers who use cell phones (texting or emailing) increased to 0.9% in 2010.
The percentage of drivers using a cell phone while holding it to their ears was 5% in 2010
The level of hand-held cell phone use was higher among women drivers than men drivers.
Drivers between the ages 16 to 24 are more likely to use a hand-held telephones hone.
More than three-quarters reported that they were likely to answer calls on all, most, or some trips while driving. They also said that they rarely consider traffic situations when deciding to use their cell phones.
There were 3,092 deaths in distraction-related car wrecks in 2010, but the number is probably much higher.
Most drivers said they are willing to answer a call or text while driving, but most of these same drivers said they would feel unsafe as a passenger in a car where the driver was sending or receiving text message

Continue reading "Texting and Driving Accidents in Tennessee" »