Nobel Biocare will reportedly pay up to $1.3 million to settle a $450 million lawsuit brought against it three years ago by a California dentist who said the company had misrepresented the safety of its NobelDirect implants.
The lawsuit, which was filed in June 2010 by Jason Yamada, DDS, of Torrance, CA, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, sought compensation for dentists who had to perform surgery on their patients or pay for restorative surgery due to complications from the implants. The complaint alleged that Nobel Biocare had knowledge that the implants were "defectively designed" but marketed them as safe and effective.
The lawsuit was certified as a class action in August 2011, and nearly 3,000 dentists received notices of the lawsuit at that time, according to a story on Law360.com. Those who did not opt out of the case will receive a refund of the actual amounts they paid for the company's failed NobelDirect implants, and in cases in which Nobel's records don't show the actual amount paid, the claimants will receive $450 each. This means the class as a whole could receive as much as $1.3 million.
The court has appointed Audet & Partners, Lopez McHugh, Ochs Law Firm, and Steven Ochs as class counsel, according to Law360.
Nobel Biocare is represented by Eric Kizirian and Roy Brisbois of Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith. Kizirian was not available for comment as of press time.
