Women injured from defective pelvic mesh implants could be $11 million better off after a court found lawyers which offered them better value for money.
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The Federal Court has already approved a $300 million settlement against Johnson & Johnson and $105 million against Boston Scientific in two class actions filed over the medical devices.
However Shine Lawyers, which ran the two successful cases, will not receive tens of millions of dollars for managing the settlement distribution scheme that determines how much each woman gets from the pool of funds.
Instead, after former chief justice James Allsop carefully examined eight alternative proposals, a trio of firms - BDO, JGA Saddler and Slater and Gordon - will take the reins.
The report of Mr Allsop, which was attached to a Federal Court judgment published on Thursday, states that Shine wanted to charge an estimated $38.5 million and needed 51 weeks to calculate who was owed what from the settlements.
On the other hand, BDO, JGA Saddler and Slater and Gordon said they could charge around $27 million but would require a longer 30 to 36 months for the job.
Mr Allsop said this proposal "on its face represents better value for money" because of the additional work the three firms would do assessing the injuries of the affected women, called group members, and the resultant compensation.
"I consider that it promotes a greater degree of fairness to all group members by the adoption of a consistent assessment method, with a lack of arbitrariness and with as full a documentary foundation that can be reasonably expected," he wrote.
The former chief judge said there would also be a "greater recognition" of the more severe effects of these devices through the winning proposal.
Mr Allsop noted JGA Saddler was run by Jan Saddler and Rebecca Jancauskas, formerly from Shine, who had "deep experience" with the two class actions.
Justice Michael Lee approved this handover after questioning in May why Shine had not looked around for cheaper options to administer the funds.
"Both the cost and efficiency of the settlement process now put in place has great advantages over that proposed when the settlement was first struck," he wrote in his judgment.
"I am satisfied the settlement distribution will now proceed more efficiently and cost-effectively than if I had uncritically accepted the initial proposals put to me."
This is the second financial hit that Shine has taken over the pelvic mesh settlements.
In August, Justice Lee rejected the law firm's bid for a further $32 million cut from the $300 million Johnson & Johnson settlement.
While the law firm had already been paid $82 million out of the settlement proceeds, it sought the additional money over interest paid after it took out external financing to run the lawsuit.
Australian Associated Press
