Covidien Hernia Mesh Settlement Talks To Get Underway After Parties Select Mediator Next Week

As lawyers prepare a group of Covidien hernia mesh lawsuits for early bellwether trials, they will meet with a mediator to discuss settlement for claims brought by individuals nationwide.

Lawyers involved in the federal Covidien hernia mesh lawsuits indicate that they will identify a mediator by February 24, who will work with the parties to determine whether a settlement can be reached to resolve more than 1,500 claims brought by individuals who experienced problems with the implants, while also continuing to prepare a group of cases for early bellwether trials.

The product liability lawsuits each raise similar allegations that patients suffered painful and debilitating complications caused by defectively designed implants sold in recent years, including Covidien’s Parietex, Symbotex and other hernia mesh products.

Since June 2022, the federal litigation has been centralized for pretrial proceedings before U.S. District Judge Patti B. Saris in the District of Massachusetts, as part of a Covidien mesh MDL (multidistrict litigation), where the parties have been preparing a small group of representative claims for early trial dates that are expected to begin in late 2025 or early 2026.

However, the court has directed lawyers to engage in a series of Covidien hernia mesh settlement talks to determine if a resolution can be reached in advance of trial.

Discovery proceedings, taking place in preparation for early test trials, have dragged amid disputes over which documents should be turned over, resulting in Covidien hernia mesh bellwether trial delays. Those trials will be used to gauge how juries may respond to certain evidence and testimony likely to be repeated throughout the litigation.

Late last year the parties asked for a 60-day extension for discovery deadlines approaching in the first half of this year, which has delayed the start of global negotiations.

On February 10, the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee (PSC) and defense attorneys filed a joint stipulation (PDF) calling again for an extension of certain discovery deadlines, indicating they mistakenly asked for too short a time period for two expert discovery deadlines in last year’s request.

The new deadlines call for plaintiffs’ expert reports for the Bellwether Pool cases to be completed by March 7, defendants’ expert reports due by April 18, and Plaintiffs’ rebuttal expert reports due by May 2.

In addition, the parties now indicate they will identify a mediator for potential settlement talks by next Monday, February 24.

In a text order on February 11, Magistrate Judge M. Page Kelley approved the new deadlines.

If the parties are unable to reach global agreements to settle large numbers of cases, it is expected that a series of early bellwether trials will be held in the MDL.

While the outcomes of these trials will not be binding on other plaintiffs, the average Covidien hernia mesh lawsuit payouts may help determine the amount the manufacturer may need to pay to avoid each case going to trial separately in the coming years.