Recently, a series of lawsuits were brought against C.R. Bard, Inc. and Bard Peripheral Vascular Inc. on behalf of users of the Recovery IVC Filter and G2 IVC filter, both of which are produced, marketed, and sold by Bard, Inc. On June 9, 2009, a lawsuit was filed in the Superior Court of Arizona and on June 15, 2009 in federal court in New York. Plaintiffs in both cases are seeking damages as a result of defective use and life threatening injuries.

Since the IVC filters were first placed on the market, the medical community has been concerned with the permanent placement of these filters within the human body. It was believed these filters should only be within the body for a finite period of time and should be retrievable. The FDA, however, approved Bard’s Recovery IVC Filter System as a retrievable device, but one that was acceptable for placement for an indeterminate period of time. In 2003, published reports indicated the failure of the Recovery IVC Filter and patients experienced severe to fatal injuries as a result. The Recovery IVC Filters were found to fracture within the body and migrate to vital organs. Users of the defective IVC filters are now seeking damages for medical expenses, pain and suffering, lost wages, and more.  Read more about adverse side effects of defective IVC filters and Bard IVC Filter lawsuits.