The two year Arizona statute of limitation will soon be running out to bring a claim against DePuy Orthopaedics and its parent company, Johnson & Johnson. Arizona has a discovery rule exception, which means that a lawsuit must be filed within two years of the date of the injury by a defective product, or within two years of the date that you reasonably knew or should have known that you were injured by a defective product.

In the DePuy ASR cases, DePuy will likely argue that the statute of limitations was triggered on the date of the recall, August 24, 2012, and that all Arizona claimants must file their lawsuits on or before August 23, 2012. DePuy may move to dismiss any lawsuits filed in Arizona after that date. In those cases filed after August 23, 2012, an Arizona plaintiff may argue that regardless of the recall, they could not have reasonably known that they were injured until after that date, if they were unaware that they required revision, or suffered from metallosis, or loosening of the implant, until sometime after the recall. If a motion to dismiss is successful, a claimant may have to accept whatever DePuy offers in its recall reimbursement program operated by Broadspire.

Additionally, other manufacturers may attempt to use the DePuy ASR August 2010 recall date as a benchmark in other metal-on-metal hip litigation. If so, Arizona claimants implanted with DePuy Pinnacle, Wright Conserve or Biomet M2A-Magnum hip replacement systems may be subject to the statute of limitations expiring on or before August 23, 2012.

Phoenix, Arizona hip replacement attorney Stephen I. Leshner has already filed lawsuits on behalf of claimants injured by DePuy ASR, DePuy Pinnacle, and Wright Conserve failed hip replacement systems, as well as lawsuits involving Wright Medical femoral neck fractures, and is investigating possible claims involving Biomet and Smith & Nephew hip replacement systems. If you or someone close to you has suffered injury as result of any metal-on-metal hip replacement system, please contact immediately Steve Leshner for a free consultation.