Settlement Reached In Boston Scientific Mesh Class Action

A settlement agreement for the sum of $105 million has been reached in the class action filed against Boston Scientific on the 22nd of March 2021 in the Federal Court, which sought damages on behalf of Australian women who received one or more pelvic mesh or sling implants. 

Shine Lawyers’ class actions practice leader Rebecca Jancauskas, who ran the action, said 

“Some women implanted with a vaginal mesh or sling to treat prolapse and incontinence issues experienced significant complications. This settlement agreement will provide these women compensation that may be used to support their future treatment needs.” 

Boston Scientific is the third pelvic mesh manufacturer to face a class action in Australia over its range of prolapse mesh and incontinence sling implants, and the first to settle the proceedings brought against the company. Shine Lawyers filed the first two actions against Johnson & Johnson / Ethicon and Astora Women’s Health and are continuing to fight on their behalf. This settlement agreement does not equate to any admission of misconduct or liability by Boston Scientific, nor has there been any finding of liability by the Court against them. The respondents deny the allegations made in the class action. This class action includes any person who was implanted with one or more of the mesh and sling implants listed below in Australia between 2005 and 1 June 2022: 

• Pinnacle™ Pelvic Floor Repair Kit; 

• Pinnacle™ Lite Posterior; 

• Uphold™ Vaginal Support System; 

• Uphold™ LITE Vaginal Support System; 

• Upsylon™ Y-Mesh; 

• Advantage™ Transvaginal Mid-Urethral Sling System; 

• Advantage Fit™ Transvaginal Mid-Urethral Sling System; 

• Obtryx™ Transobturator Sling System; 

• Obtryx™ II Transobturator Mid-Urethral Sling System; 

• Lynx™ Suprapubic Mid-Urethral Sling System; 

• Solyx™ Single-Incision Sling System; and/or 

• Polyform™. 

Register your interest Women who believe they were implanted with these products can register their interest in joining the class action at www.bostonmeshclassaction.com.au. ABOUT THE CLASS ACTION: 

• By the end of 2017 and into 2018 and 2019, different mesh products were being recalled from the market, including three made by Boston Scientific, which represented a few products in the company’s mesh product portfolio 

• In early 2018 the TGA ordered the company to add warnings about possible adverse side effects such as severe chronic pain, groin pain and bladder perforation 

• A 2018 Senate inquiry concluded surgery with mesh, which it estimated had been performed on about 150,000 women in Australia, should be a last resort 

• The first mesh class action was brought by Shine Lawyers on behalf of thousands of women in the Federal Court against Johnson & Johnson and two subsidiaries, including Ethicon, culminating in a trial which ran for seven months. This class action was successful in 2019, the matter was appealed by Johnson & Johnson & Ethicon but the Full Court of the Federal Court dismissed the appeal on Friday 5 March, 2021 in favour of Shine’s case. On 5 November 2021 the High Court dismissed Johnson & Johnson’s application for special leave to appeal 

• Shine Lawyers funded this action.