On April 5, 2022, plaintiff William Kissel filed a complaint in Middlesex County Superior Court that claimed damages under the NJPLA against Johnson & Johnson, Johnson & Johnson Services, Medical Device Business Services, and DePuy Synthes Sales. The matter was removed by Medical Device and DePuy on May 5.

Kissel, a Colorado resident, alleged in his complaint that J&J participated in the production, sale, design, and marketing of the allegedly defective product, the DePuy Pinnacle MoM hip replacement system. In a notice of removal filed by Medical Device and DePuy, the companies argued that removal was proper and that the J&J defendants were fraudulently joined. The two companies asserted that since Kissel got the hip implant in Colorado, that state’s law applied.