Boston Scientific Mesh Class Action

The class action includes any person who was implanted, in Australia, with one or more of the sling and mesh implants listed below to treat stress incontinence or prolapse.

The implants are:

• Pinnacle;
• Uphold;
• Uphold Lite;
• Upsylon;
• Advantage;
• Advantage Fit;
• Obtryx;
• Obtryx II;
• Lynx; and
• Solyx

You may request a copy of the operation report directly from the hospital where you underwent your mesh surgery. Alternatively, you can request this information from your treating surgeon who performed your mesh surgery.

Shine Lawyers can make these inquiries for you and assist you in confirming your implant type(s).

You remain a group member of this class action even if you have received a Boston Scientific implant and another implant from a different manufacturer and you should express your interest to join this class action.

If you have been implanted with a mesh or tape manufactured by Ethicon/Johnson & Johnson or American Medical Systems, you may also be a group member in these further class actions being advanced by Shine Lawyers. Further information regarding these class actions can be found at on our Prolapse Mesh Class Actions page.

If you are group member in this class action you will be required to supply some records relevant to your assessment – including medical records. We recommend keeping a record of any medical practitioners you have attended in relation to your mesh or tape complications.

Please be aware medical records are usually destroyed after a period of 7 years, we therefore recommend you contact your medical practitioner and request that your medical records are not destroyed. Please be assured that if your records are no longer available, you can still be a part of the Boston class action.

If you hold a copy of any records in relation to your implant or treatment, please send these to our mesh legal team by email at [email protected] or by post to:

Shine Lawyers – Class Actions PO Box 12011 George Street QLD 4003

We will keep a copy of any relevant records on file.

At this stage we are unable to provide any specific advice as to what compensation may be payable to group members who are found eligible to participate in compensation as part of any settlement or court framework.

Group members may be entitled to the following types of compensation depending on their individual circumstances:

• pain and suffering;
• past and/or future out-of-pocket expenses;
• past and/or future care and domestic assistance;
• past and/or future economic loss or loss of income.

As part of any award for compensation, certain refunds may be required to be paid back to Medicare, Private Health Funds and other entities such as Centrelink. Whether or not refunds are owed will depend on the specific circumstances of each registered group member’s claim and will be determined when calculating compensation.

Participating in the mesh class actions will not expose you to any out of pocket costs.

All costs will be initially covered by Shine Lawyers, and in the event of a successful outcome, any costs payable to Shine Lawyers will be deducted from, and will not exceed, any compensation you may be entitled to.

Unfortunately, it is not possible to provide time frames or estimates of when we expect the class action to resolve.

Future timeframes depend on many factors including whether a settlement can be reached or whether the case proceeds to trial in Court.

We will continue to send updates to group members advising them of developments as they are available.

As we are not medical professionals, we are unable to provide you with advice regarding your treatment options.

If you have any concerns regarding your own health, complications or treatment, we suggest that you speak with your doctor or specialist. If you are unhappy with your treatment or advice, it is advisable that you seek a second professional opinion.

We understand that women have suffered enormously in relation to their implants and that this can be overwhelming and cause you to feel alone. If you feel depressed, anxious or suicidal we urge you to contact your GP or Lifeline Australia to ensure you get the help you need. You can call Lifeline at any time on 13 11 14.

You may be angry or disappointed in your doctor and feel that they should have known the mesh was defective. You may also feel that your doctor was slow to respond to the side-effects you were experiencing.

While these feelings are completely valid, legally they don’t amount to negligence on the part of your doctor.

Because of this, our legal team has made the decision to pursue claims against the manufacturers rather than the doctors who prescribed them.