Plaintiff in Bard PowerPort Bellwether Lawsuit Dies Before Summer Trial

First federal Bard PowerPort lawsuit is still set for trial to begin in April 2026, with a series of additional bellwether claims going before juries over the next year to gauge evidence that will be repeated in thousands of similar claims.

A plaintiff selected to serve as one of the first Bard PowerPort lawsuits to go before a jury in the federal court system has died, casting uncertainty over whether the summer trial date will proceed as planned.

The case is one of a series of Bard PowerPort bellwether trials scheduled to begin over the next year, with the first lawsuit still expected to go before a jury in April 2026, involving claims brought by a different plaintiff.

The claims were selected as representative bellwethers to gauge how juries may respond to similar evidence and testimony likely to be repeated throughout more than 3,000 Bard PowerPort lawsuits being pursued in the federal court system. Each of the lawsuits involve allegations that design defects with the implantable vascular access device (TIVAD) increase the risk of port catheter infections, fractures and migration injuries.

The Bard PowerPort, also known as a port catheter, has been marketed as a safe and effective way to give physicians a reliable means for delivering drugs directly into a patient’s bloodstream when repeated injections are expected, such as during chemotherapy. The system consists of a small injection port where the needle is inserted, which connects to a polyurethane catheter that delivers medication. 

However, plaintiffs now claim that the use of barium sulfate in the construction of the port catheter systems has caused premature breakdown of the implants, resulting in catheter fractures and migrations, as well as infections, blood clots, vascular damage and, in some cases, death.

Similar claims over the use of barium sulfate have also been presented in more than 300 Angiodynamics port catheter lawsuits.

Given common questions of fact and law, all federal Bard PowerPort lawsuits are consolidated in the District of Arizona before U.S. District Judge David G. Campbell for coordinated discovery and pretrial proceedings.

Early in the litigation, Judge Campbell ordered the parties to prepare a series of “bellwether” cases for early test trials, to help the parties evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of their arguments, evidence and expert testimony, as well as promote potential Bard PowerPort lawsuit settlements that may resolve the claims.

Last year, the court selected six Bard PowerPort bellwether lawsuits that have been undergoing preparations for a series of trial dates set to begin between April 2026 and February 2027. One of those cases was a lawsuit filed by Wanda Miller, whose case was scheduled to go to trial on July 7, 2026.

However, Miller’s death was announced in a joint memorandum (PDF) issued last week. Lawyers involved in the case met with Judge Campbell for a case management conference held on February 19, to discuss the impact of the death.

According to a memorandum submitted in advance of the meeting, Miller’s health took a “significant downturn” in late January, and she was placed in hospice due to cancer. She died on February 2.  

Plaintiffs’ leadership indicates that they were unable to perform a preservation deposition before Miller’s death because she was uncommunicative due to the advanced state of her cancer. Bard PowerPort lawsuit attorneys indicate they will consult with Miller’s family “to inquire whether an estate will be opened and a representative appointed, and whether that representative wishes to continue Mrs. Miller’s case.”

Bard PowerPort Lawsuit Bellwether Trials

The first PowerPort lawsuit scheduled to go to trial involves claims by Robert Cook, which is still expected to begin on April 21, 2026. In addition to the Miller trial scheduled for July, additional bellwether trials are scheduled to begin on August 18, October 13 and December 1, 2026, and another trial is scheduled to begin on February 2, 2027.

In addition to the federal lawsuits, an additional 211 claims are centralized as part of a multicounty litigation (MCL) in New Jersey, with another 25 lawsuits filed in Arizona state court. A claim involving a Bard PowerPort lawsuit brought in Arizona is scheduled to go to trial on August 3.

While the outcomes of these early bellwether trials in both federal and state courts will not have any binding impact on other cases pending, the average jury awards are expected to have a major impact on future Bard PowerPort settlement negotiations.

However, if the bellwether trials do not result in a global agreement to settle Bard PowerPort lawsuits, Judge Campbell may begin remanding hundreds of individual claims to various U.S. District Courts nationwide for separate trials in the future.