I'm proud to be the plaintiff's attorney in a federal class action lawsuit filed recently by our firm, Jones Ward PLC. The suit
is against Anthem Health Plans
of Kentucky, for illegally conspiring to drive up prices for consumers.
Anthem is the largest health insurer in Kentucky by far, collecting $326
million in premiums every year. The next largest insurer, Humana,
collects just $27 million in premiums.
Anthem's status as the 800-pound gorilla of health insurance in the Commonwealth is no accident. Anthem operates under the Blue Cross Blue Shield trademark, and is part of insurance mega-company Wellpoint, Inc.
Anthem's strategy for limiting competition is simple. It teams up with
other Blue Cross partners and illegally divides up the nation's
insurance market in violation of the Sherman Act.
The insurance companies then agree to stay on their own turf and not
compete with each other. In the process, they drive up prices and keep
competitors out.
To read more about this case, and to download a PDF copy of the lawsuit, click here.
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Friday, October 12, 2012
Bad products flood U.S. economy
From exercise bikes and vitamins to
coffeemakers and walking shoes, defective products are flooding the U.S.
economy and harming consumers in all walks of life. That's the general
message of a newspaper story published today
by Darla Carter of The Courier-Journal in Louisville. In describing a
long list of recalled or defective items, Carter writes that "products
that we buy to improve our health or make our lives easier can leave us
feeling cheated because they don't live up to marketing hype or have
dangerous flaws."
This news story should not come as a surprise to consumers who have been injured by these products. It happens more often than you might think. The attorneys at Jones Ward PLC receive calls every day about problems like this. Here's a list of some of the defective products:
This list of recalled products could certainly be longer. Indeed, nearly every day a consumer product in the United States is recalled due to safety concerns or fraudulent marketing. If you or a loved one have been injured by one of the above products, or another recalled consumer item, call Attorney Alex Davis at 502-882-6000 for a free case evaluation, or email him at alex@jonesward.com.
This news story should not come as a surprise to consumers who have been injured by these products. It happens more often than you might think. The attorneys at Jones Ward PLC receive calls every day about problems like this. Here's a list of some of the defective products:
- MR. COFFEE SINGLE CUP BREWING SYSTEM
- REEBOK'S EASYTONE WALKING SHOES
- WINDOW BLINDS BY BLIND XPRESS
- CHILDREN'S VITAMINS
- AB CIRCLE PRO
- EARLY MODEL TRX SUSPENSION TRAINER DEVICES
- GENERIC ANTIDEPRESSANT BUDEPRION XL 300 MG
This list of recalled products could certainly be longer. Indeed, nearly every day a consumer product in the United States is recalled due to safety concerns or fraudulent marketing. If you or a loved one have been injured by one of the above products, or another recalled consumer item, call Attorney Alex Davis at 502-882-6000 for a free case evaluation, or email him at alex@jonesward.com.
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Metal hip implant cases moving forward
I've spent most of the last three years learning about how metal hip implants injure people. These medical devices were promoted over the last decade as the best thing since sliced bread. They were pitched as a product that would last forever. Turned out that many of them had a higher than normal failure rate.
Now, hip device companies are facing a mountain of lawsuits from people with a nasty condition called metallosis, which can injure the kidneys, destroy tissue and bone, and cause memory problems. Here's a blog post that I wrote for our law firm, Jones Ward PLC, earlier today about the latest twist in the mass tort world of hip implants.
"Dozens of lawsuits over failed Biomet hip implants are being merged together in a federal court in Indiana, over the objection of Biomet.
The cases, including some from Jones Ward PLC, involve failed metal-on-metal implants made by Biomet. The most common type is the Biomet M2A Magnum. Lawyers for the Indiana company argued that the cases should not be merged together, in part because they claimed the devices were not as defective as other metal-on-metal implants such as the DePuy ASR.
The U.S. Judicial Panel on Multi-District Litigation, or JPML, disagreed. The panel, in a ruling filed Oct. 2, 2012, wrote that Biomet's efforts to settle some cases involving failed Magnums were "dwarfed by the almost 70 cases currently pending in federal court."
That number will almost certainly grow in the coming months as lawyers with Jones Ward PLC and other leading mass tort law firms seek compensation on behalf of those who have been injured by failed metal-on-metal Biomet implants. Sadly, the problems with these implants are similar to the problems with other metal-on-metal implants made by DePuy, Zimmer, and other manufacturers. In certain patients, the metal parts rub against each other, shedding tiny particles of cobalt and chromium into the patient's bloodstream, which can lead to a dangerous condition called metallosis.
The only permanent cure for metallosis is surgery to have the metal implant device removed. Although the cases against Biomet will likely require extensive litigation over the coming years, the recent ruling by the JPML is a step in the right direction toward getting injured implant recipients the compensation they deserve. Unlike a class action lawsuit, these cases will be merged together in Indiana just for the purposes of handling pre-trial testimony and the exchange of evidence, which is called discovery. In theory, each case would return to a local court once the merged case in Indiana is complete. If you or a loved one have been injured by a failed metal-on-metal hip implant made by Biomet, DePuy, or another company, call Attorney Alex Davis at 502-882-6000 for a free case evaluation, or email him at alex@jonesward.com."
Now, hip device companies are facing a mountain of lawsuits from people with a nasty condition called metallosis, which can injure the kidneys, destroy tissue and bone, and cause memory problems. Here's a blog post that I wrote for our law firm, Jones Ward PLC, earlier today about the latest twist in the mass tort world of hip implants.
"Dozens of lawsuits over failed Biomet hip implants are being merged together in a federal court in Indiana, over the objection of Biomet.
The cases, including some from Jones Ward PLC, involve failed metal-on-metal implants made by Biomet. The most common type is the Biomet M2A Magnum. Lawyers for the Indiana company argued that the cases should not be merged together, in part because they claimed the devices were not as defective as other metal-on-metal implants such as the DePuy ASR.
The U.S. Judicial Panel on Multi-District Litigation, or JPML, disagreed. The panel, in a ruling filed Oct. 2, 2012, wrote that Biomet's efforts to settle some cases involving failed Magnums were "dwarfed by the almost 70 cases currently pending in federal court."
That number will almost certainly grow in the coming months as lawyers with Jones Ward PLC and other leading mass tort law firms seek compensation on behalf of those who have been injured by failed metal-on-metal Biomet implants. Sadly, the problems with these implants are similar to the problems with other metal-on-metal implants made by DePuy, Zimmer, and other manufacturers. In certain patients, the metal parts rub against each other, shedding tiny particles of cobalt and chromium into the patient's bloodstream, which can lead to a dangerous condition called metallosis.
The only permanent cure for metallosis is surgery to have the metal implant device removed. Although the cases against Biomet will likely require extensive litigation over the coming years, the recent ruling by the JPML is a step in the right direction toward getting injured implant recipients the compensation they deserve. Unlike a class action lawsuit, these cases will be merged together in Indiana just for the purposes of handling pre-trial testimony and the exchange of evidence, which is called discovery. In theory, each case would return to a local court once the merged case in Indiana is complete. If you or a loved one have been injured by a failed metal-on-metal hip implant made by Biomet, DePuy, or another company, call Attorney Alex Davis at 502-882-6000 for a free case evaluation, or email him at alex@jonesward.com."
Saturday, October 6, 2012
Lawsuit of the week: penis amputation case
Our law firm, Jones Ward, was swarmed by reporters this week after we filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of a Louisville man whose penis had to be amputated due to poor hospital care. That's right. Amputated. Ouch.
To read a copy of the complaint, click here. Numerous television stations and newspapers, some as far away as England, ran stories about the lawsuit, and it was the focus of a special report on CNN.
What wasn't mentioned in those segments is the fact that the attorneys at Jones Ward PLC deal with these kinds of cases on a daily basis. For example, the law firm currently represents a coal miner who had his foot and lower leg amputated in a job-related accident in eastern Kentucky. It also represents individuals who have had body parts amputated due to failed medical implants. Perhaps the saddest amputation case of all was a jury trial in which the attorneys at Jones Ward successfully argued in favor of a woman who witnessed the amputation of her newborn baby's head in the hospital as the baby was being born. The jury awarded the woman $1.4 million.
In other news, here's a photo of me, obviously pretty pleased with myself, at the swearing in ceremony for new lawyers on Thursday. There's another ceremony in Frankfort on Oct. 19, but I wanted to be official as soon as possible. Time to get to work.
To read a copy of the complaint, click here. Numerous television stations and newspapers, some as far away as England, ran stories about the lawsuit, and it was the focus of a special report on CNN.
What wasn't mentioned in those segments is the fact that the attorneys at Jones Ward PLC deal with these kinds of cases on a daily basis. For example, the law firm currently represents a coal miner who had his foot and lower leg amputated in a job-related accident in eastern Kentucky. It also represents individuals who have had body parts amputated due to failed medical implants. Perhaps the saddest amputation case of all was a jury trial in which the attorneys at Jones Ward successfully argued in favor of a woman who witnessed the amputation of her newborn baby's head in the hospital as the baby was being born. The jury awarded the woman $1.4 million.
In other news, here's a photo of me, obviously pretty pleased with myself, at the swearing in ceremony for new lawyers on Thursday. There's another ceremony in Frankfort on Oct. 19, but I wanted to be official as soon as possible. Time to get to work.
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Sweet, sweet news: Bar Exam results arrive
All my poker chips riding on one number |
I'm just relieved that the process is over. It was a humbling experience. I'll be sworn in as a lawyer Thursday by Kentucky Supreme Court Justice Lisabeth Hughes Abramson in Louisville. My name will appear on lawsuits as soon as my license is complete, possibly as soon as next week. Then it's on to depositions, discovery, and possibly a trial later this year or early in 2013. Most people don't wake up in the morning and smile when they remember they have to go to work. I honestly can't wait to get to work as a lawyer. Congratulations to all those who passed the Kentucky bar exam.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)