(PRWEB) January 31, 2013

As the number of lawsuits mount in New Jersey against Stryker over its recalled Rejuvenate Hip Stem and ABG II Modular Hip Stem components, the New Jersey Supreme Court has ruled that all cases in the state should and will be consolidated into a multicounty litigation in Bergen County Superior Court before Judge Brian R. Martinotti, the Rottenstein Law Group reports after reviewing court documents (New Jersey MCL-296).

The Jan. 15 decision of New Jerseys high court follows deliberations in Fall 2012 over how to deal with a growing number of lawsuits in several counties. According to the court order establishing the MCL,* the consolidation is necessary to speed up pretrial proceedings for current and future Stryker Rejuvenate Hip Stem and ABG II Modular Hip Stem lawsuits. MCLs, as with multidistrict litigations at the federal level, centralize actions for pretrial matters to avoid duplication of efforts and to prevent conflicting decisions about pretrial matters.

A multicounty litigation is a good sign for plaintiffs, said Rochelle Rottenstein, principal of the Rottenstein Law Group, which represents hip implant recipients in Stryker lawsuits. Consolidated pretrial proceedings will mean more efficient, cost-effective run-ups to individual trials of the many claimants.

The initial conference is scheduled for 10 a.m. on Feb. 20 at the Bergen County Justice Center in Hackensack, N.J. At the conference, counsel will submit to the court information such as the status of discovery; the list of parties witnesses expect to testify; the status of settlement negotiations, mediation and prospects for settlement; and a concise demand and/or offer to resolve the dispute, according to court documents.

Stryker Recall

In July 2012, the Kalamazoo, Mich.-based Stryker Corp. announced a recall of both its Rejuvenate and ABG II hip replacements because of a potential for corrosion and fretting that could result in adverse local tissue reactions and possible pain and swelling around the hip, according to Strykers website.** Lawsuits for another recalled metal-on-metal hip device, the DePuy ASR, are also consolidated in an MCL in Bergen County (In Re DePuy ASR Hip Implants Litigation, BER-L-3971-11).

The Rottenstein Law Group manages a Stryker Hip Replacement Recall Center designed to help those who believe they have suffered injuries evaluate if they have a case.

judiciary.state.nj.us/notices/2013/n130130a.pdf
** stryker.com/en-us/products/Orthopaedics/modularneckstems/index.htm

About THE ROTTENSTEIN LAW GROUP

The Rottenstein Law Group is a New York-based firm that represents clients nationwide in mass tort actions. The firm was founded by Rochelle Rottenstein, who has more than two decades of experience as a lawyer, to represent clients hurt by defective medical devices. (Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.)

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http://www.strykerhipreplacementrecall.net/