Joseph Goodwin

Joseph Goodwin

United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia

Tenure

1995 - Present

Years in position

29

Education

Personal

Transvaginal mesh multidistrict litigation case (2014)

See also: United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia (In Re Ethicon, Inc., Pelvic Repair System Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2327)

In January 2014, in a decision which hinged upon the regulatory process involved, Judge Goodwin ruled that the manner in which Johnson & Johnson's transvaginal mesh product came to market could not be introduced as evidence in the multidistrict litigation case being heard in his court as it could confuse the jury.^[3]

As background, transvaginal mesh was used to treat women with pelvic and urinary problems, but some implants were allegedly defective and caused the women to experience serious health problems. In the Ethicon cases, Johnson & Johnson's (J&J) Gynecare TVT product bypassed full pre-market Food and Drug Administration (FDA) review because it was made out of the same material, polypropylene, used in another J&J Ethicon division product that had already gone through full FDA review. The FDA's full pre-market review typically took about 1,200 hours, whereas the agency's review of Gynecare TVT took only 20 hours.^[3]

In his decision, Judge Goodwin noted that focusing on the FDA review process involved in the case "pose[d] a substantial risk of misleading the jury and confusing the issue." J&J's Ethicon division argued that because polypropylene was approved and deemed safe by the FDA in the past for another product, its use in the Gynecare TVT product was also safe, thus barring plaintiffs from claiming it was defective. As Judge Goodwin wrote, however, Gynecare TVT "is a different product, used in a different manner, for a different purpose," and a discussion of its route to market could unnecessarily confuse a jury hearing the case.^[3]

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2} Federal Judicial Center, "Biography of Joseph Robert Goodwin"
2. ↑ THOMAS, "Presidential Nominations 104th Congress: Joseph R. Goodwin (USDC, SDWV)," accessed March 15, 2014
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1 3.2} State Journal, "US District judge issues ruling on transvaginal mesh litigation," January 31, 2014