Nevada Judge Retains Jurisdiction over Hip Implant Suit Against DePuy, Device Supplier

LAS VEGAS — A federal judge in Nevada has refused to send a DePuy Orthopaedics Inc. hip implant lawsuit back to state court, determining that a resident medical device supplier named as a defendant was fraudulently joined to the case.

Judge Robert C. Jones of the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada issued the ruling Sept. 16, despite evidence presented by the plaintiff indicating that a representative of the non-diverse supplier took possession of the allegedly defective device after it had been removed from the plaintiff’s hip.

Plaintiff William Martin initially filed his lawsuit in Nevada’s Clark County …