Centralized Docket Created for N.J. Ethicon Prolene Hernia System Actions

TRENTON, N.J. — The New Jersey Supreme Court has created a centralized docket for cases in which plaintiffs allege injuries caused by Ethicon Inc.’s Prolene Hernia System (PHS) surgical mesh, ruling that centralization of the actions will conserve judicial resources.

In a Jan. 6 notice to the bar, the high court said it assigned the multicounty litigation docket to Superior Court Judge John C. Porto of the Atlantic County Superior Court.

The PHS a multi-layered, three-dimensional mesh device marketed for inguinal and ventral hernia repairs, can cause an intense foreign body inflammatory response, leading to contracture of the mesh, pain, …