South Florida Personal Injury Lawyers Blog
Vaginal mesh injuries have resulted in many Florida products liability claims in recent years. Vaginal mesh has been used to treat women’s health issues, such as pelvic organ prolapse and stress urinary incontinence, by supporting weakened or damaged tissue. However, the use of vaginal mesh has led to serious complications for some women. Complications include vaginal pain, infection, inflammation, pain during intercourse, and mesh poking through vaginal skin. The complications are so serious that they have led to a stop in sales of the products. Earlier this year, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ordered all vaginal mesh manufacturers to stop selling and distributing the products.
Because of these complications, in recent years, many women have filed suit against vaginal mesh manufacturers by filing product liability claims across the country. Product liability claims involve the use of a product that causes injury or other damages to consumers.
In Florida products liability cases, state courts have adopted Section 402A of the Restatement (Second) of Torts as the standard for product liability. Under Florida law, products liability cases require proof first that the product at issue is defective. Second, they require proof that the defect caused the plaintiff’s injuries. A product can be defective because of its manufacturing defect, design defect, or inadequate warning.
In the case of a design defect, a design is defective under Florida law if it renders a product unreasonably dangerous. Florida courts consider the consumer expectations test in design defect claims, which considers whether a product acts how a reasonable consumer would expect the product to act. Florida’s Supreme Court has recognized strict products liability for design defect claims, reasoning that a manufacturer undertakes a special responsibility toward the public by placing a product on the market that is potentially dangerous. Under Florida’s strict liability theory, plaintiffs can pursue a claim against any party in a product’s distribution chain without needing to establish that party’s negligence.
Florida Plaintiff Wins Multi-Million Dollar Verdict in Vaginal Mesh Case
In a recent case, a jury awarded a plaintiff $4,400,000 in damages in a Florida vaginal mesh lawsuit. The plaintiff filed the lawsuit because of injuries she suffered after she had the mesh surgically implanted to treat her stress urinary incontinence. The jury awarded the plaintiff $4 million in punitive damages and $400,000 in compensatory damages. An appeals court later reduced the awarded to $2,400,000 under Florida’s statutory punitive damages cap.
Contact a Florida Products Liability Lawyer
If you received a vaginal mesh implant and are having any symptoms, including bleeding, pain, or pain with intercourse, contact a Florida product liability attorney. The product liability lawyers at Friedman Rodman Frank & Estrada, P.A. have over 100 years of combined experience helping accident victims obtain financial compensation for their injuries. Our door is always open for victims of defective and unreasonably dangerous products. We will fight hard to recover compensation for you. Contact us online or call us at 305-448-8585 to schedule a free initial consultation with a Florida defective product attorney. All consultations are free and confidential, and there is no pressure to pursue your claim.