LifeCell Seeks Dismissal of Strattice Hernia Mesh Lawsuit Set for Trial

Judge will hear oral arguments for the motion to dismiss on September 2, which seeks to prevent the bellwether claim from going before a jury in February 2026.

The U.S. District Judge presiding over a number of Strattice hernia mesh lawsuits will hear oral arguments next month, to rule on a motion filed by the manufacturer to dismiss a bellwether claim being prepared for trial, arguing that the plaintiff waited too long to file the case, and that his surgeons were aware of the potential health risks involved with the biological patch made from pig skin.

The motion focuses on a Strattice mesh bellwether claim filed by Robert Sandoval, who says his hernia patch failed after 10 years, resulting in an infection. As a result of what he claims is a defective and dangerous design, Sandoval indicates that he required additional surgeries to have the mesh surgically removed, but was left with severe physical injuries and permanent disfigurement.

LifeCell Corporation’s Strattice mesh was first introduced to the market in 2008, as an alternative to synthetic mesh. It is constructed from pig skin and preserved in a phosphate buffered aqueous solution.

The hernia mesh is known as a cross-linked graft device, designed to chemically link the proteins in the tissue together. However, cross-linking carries a risk of foreign body response and infections, according to allegations raised in a growing number of hernia mesh lawsuits now being filed by individuals who received the Strattice product.

The complaints suggest that the biologic hernia mesh product was defectively designed, pointing to more than 450 medical device reports submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) involving the Strattice hernia mesh complications from 1990 through 2020, including at least six deaths, 340 injuries and 107 mesh malfunctions.

In June 2025, U.S. Magistrate Judge Leda D. Wettre, who is presiding over the litigation in the District of New Jersey, indicated Sandoval’s claim will go before a jury in February 2026, making the lawsuit the first in a series of bellwether trials designed to test how juries will respond to evidence and testimony likely to be repeated throughout dozens of other claims. It is hoped the trial results will help the parties negotiate a global Strattice mesh lawsuit settlement agreement, which would avoid the need for lengthy and expensive individual trials.

However, on August 5, LifeCell filed a motion for summary judgment (PDF), asking that the case be tossed out before the claims can be heard by a jury. A second bellwether trial is expected about four months later, but no exact date has been set for that one.

The motion claims Sandoval waited too long to file his claims for product liability, express warranty and Consumer Protection violations, according to New Jersey’s two-year statute of limitations. Sandoval underwent removal surgery in 2018, and filed his lawsuit in 2021. However, his lawsuit indicated that he did not discover that his complications were caused by design defects until closer to when the lawsuit was filed.

LifeCell also argues that the plaintiff has not established that a synthetic mesh would have been safer or more appropriate in his circumstances, and that Sandoval’s surgeons should have been well-versed in the risks of hernia mesh infections and failures.

Sandoval has until September 5 to respond to the motion.

While the results of the bellwether trials will not be binding on other claims, if no Strattice settlement agreement results from the test cases, the lawsuits will likely be remanded for individual trial dates.