This guide identifies the principal case numbers, courts, and milestones, separates allegations from orders, and shows how to verify the latest status. Dockets move constantly, so treat everything here as of October 20, 2026 and confirm against the live record.
Key Takeaways
- Four matters run in parallel: the Chapter 11 case, MDL 3044, Florida coordination, and the trust's suit against TPG.
- The October 2024 filing paused product-liability timelines through the automatic stay, then shifted claims into trusts.
- Court orders and docket entries are facts; complaints, news reports, and recovery projections are not.
- Re-check every deadline, count, and hearing date before relying on it.
Exactech Bankruptcy Docket: Case Number, Court, and Procedural Posture
Caption and filing
Exactech, Inc. and four affiliates filed Chapter 11 on October 29, 2024. The cases are jointly administered as Exactech, Inc., Case No. 24-12441 (LSS), in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware, before Judge Laurie Selber Silverstein. Kroll's case site serves as the claims and noticing agent portal, and the court maintains an official page at deb.uscourts.gov/24-12441.
The filing triggered the automatic stay. Under 11 U.S.C. § 362(a)(1), it halts "the commencement or continuation... of a judicial, administrative, or other action or proceeding against the debtor" that arose before the case began. That is why litigation against Exactech stopped.
Docket milestones
- First-day motions: Kroll's appointment as claims agent (Dkt. 3), lien and § 503(b)(9) payments (Dkt. 7), insurance (Dkt. 9), and DIP financing (Dkts. 17/19). These are motions, not proof of approval.
- DIP proposal: The first-day declaration describes an $85 million all-new-money facility from prepetition lenders.
- Bar dates: General claims, Feb. 7, 2025; governmental claims, Apr. 28, 2025; DOJ/state FCA governmental claims, Aug. 25, 2025. All have passed.
- Confirmation: The court confirmed the Fifth Amended Joint Chapter 11 Plan on Sept. 17, 2025 (Dkt. 1647). The effective date was Oct. 31, 2025.
How the plan treated each group
| Group | Treatment |
|---|---|
| First-lien lenders (Class 3) | Pro rata share of 100% of New Interests, subject to dilution |
| Personal-injury and wrongful-death claims (Class 4A) | Assumed by the Settlement Trust; paid pro rata from Distributable Value under trust procedures |
| Commercial general unsecured (Class 4B) | Assumed by the Commercial GUC Trust, same pro rata structure |
The claims summary does not state a trust-funding amount or recovery projection, and it does not establish the full scope of nondebtor releases. Consult the plan and confirmation order directly for the terms of any releases or injunctions.
What to look for on the docket
- Bar dates and notices of confirmation and effective date
- Trust documents and distribution procedures
- Omnibus hearing agendas
- Professional-retention and fee applications
- Orders modifying claimant procedures
One distinction trips people up. A bankruptcy proof-of-claim deadline, set under Rule 3003, is not a statute of limitations for a personal-injury lawsuit. Section 108(c) offers a limited extension of some nonbankruptcy deadlines tied to the stay, but the result depends on the claim and the governing law.
Related Exactech Cases and Proceedings
MDL 3044 in the Eastern District of New York
In re Exactech Polyethylene Orthopedic Products Liability Litigation, No. 1:22-md-03044-NGG-MMH, consolidates federal pretrial proceedings before Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis.
On Nov. 1, 2024, the MDL court stayed the action pending the bankruptcy and adjourned deadlines sine die. No stay-lifting order or new trial date appears on the docket through its latest entry, Nov. 5, 2025.
Pre-stay schedules are stale. A May 2024 order had set jury selection for Trial 3 on Oct. 20, 2025 and Trial 4 on Jan. 12, 2026. Do not treat those as having happened. The same goes for plaintiff fact sheet timing, which was tied to bellwether pool placement and trial dates.
JPML's Aug. 3, 2026 report still lists the MDL as active, with 1,838 pending actions. That classification alone does not show that the schedule resumed.
Coordinated Florida litigation
An Oct. 11, 2022 order from the Eighth Judicial Circuit in Alachua County created Exactech Master Case v. Exactech, No. 01-2022-CA-002670, coordinating Exactech hip, knee, and ankle cases. Confirm its post-October 2024 status on the live state docket. Track it separately: pleadings, scheduling, and governing state law differ from the MDL.
Exactech Settlement Trust v. TPG
On Feb. 5, 2026, trustee Ellen K. Reisman filed C.A. No. 2026-0129-MTZ in the Delaware Court of Chancery against TPG entities and several individuals. The complaint alleges concealment of defects, delayed recalls, fiduciary breaches, and fraudulent transfer involving a $5,909,935 payment to TPG.
These are allegations only. No ruling is readily available on the public record, so check the live docket through File & ServeXpress public access.
The False Claims Act settlement
The DOJ announced on Sept. 16, 2025 that Exactech would pay $8 million ($7.64 million federal, $360,000 state) to resolve allegations about knee devices billed to Medicare, Medicaid, and the VA. DOJ's announcement states allegations only, with no liability determination.
It is a government-program resolution. It is not a product-liability settlement, an MDL outcome, or a payout to tort claimants. Check for any later order, amendment, dismissal, or appeal.
Exactech Case Timeline and Current Status
| Date | Event | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 2004–Aug. 2021 | Affected defective-bag devices manufactured (some implanted through Feb. 7, 2022) | FDA |
| June 29, 2021 | Connexion GXL hip recall initiated (Z-2116-2021) | FDA |
| Aug. 30, 2021 | Truliant knee and Vantage ankle recalls initiated | FDA |
| Feb. 7, 2022 | Knee and ankle recall expanded | FDA |
| Aug. 11, 2022 | Hip recall expanded (Z-1733-2022) | FDA |
| Oct. 7, 2022 | JPML initial transfer order, MDL 3044 | JPML |
| Oct. 11, 2022 | Alachua County coordination order | Fla. Cir. Ct. |
| Oct. 29, 2024 | Chapter 11 petition | D. Del. |
| Nov. 1, 2024 | MDL stayed | E.D.N.Y. |
| Sept. 16–17, 2025 | DOJ settlement; plan confirmed | DOJ; D. Del. |
| Oct. 31, 2025 | Plan effective | Kroll |
| Feb. 5, 2026 | Trust complaint against TPG | Del. Ch. |
| Aug. 3, 2026 | JPML lists MDL as active | JPML |
Status snapshot as of October 20, 2026
- Bankruptcy estate: Plan confirmed, effective, and reported consummated. Bar dates have passed.
- MDL: Stayed; no new trial date is readily available on the docket.
- Florida coordination: Current status is not readily available.
- Settlement Trust: Holds assumed personal-injury claims; distribution depends on trust procedures.
- TPG action: Filed; no ruling is readily available. The action remains pending.
What the Exactech Dockets Reveal About Products and Claims
The alleged packaging problem
FDA says the defective bags lacked an oxygen-barrier layer, potentially exposing polyethylene to oxygen before implantation. Oxidation may cause early wear, component failure, pain, bone loss, swelling, and revision surgery. The FDA describes roughly 80% of knee and ankle replacements made since 2004 as packaged in defective bags, per its safety communication. The FDA passage uses "bone loss"; plaintiffs' term "osteolysis" comes from the litigation.
Products named in recalls
- Knee: Optetrak, Logic, and Truliant in defective bags (Truliant record Z-0023-2022)
- Hip: Connexion GXL, Novation, Acumatch liners (Z-2116-2021); August 2022 expansion to GXL liners in non-conforming bags (Z-1733-2022)
- Ankle: Vantage fixed- and mobile-bearing liners (Z-0024-2022)
No separate Alteon-specific FDA record is readily available. Don't assume every Alteon product is recalled; match product and packaging.
Identification versus liability
Implant stickers, operative reports, imaging, and revision records help identify a device and administer a claim. They do not decide liability, causation, eligibility, or damages. This article offers no individualized medical or legal advice.
How Professionals Can Research and Monitor the Exactech Docket
Source hierarchy
- Bankruptcy court docket and orders (D. Del. page; PACER Case Locator, case 24-12441)
- Plan, claims-agent, and trust materials (Kroll)
- MDL and state dockets (PACER, case 1:22-md-03044-NGG-MMH; Chancery via File & ServeXpress)
- FDA and JPML records
- Attributed news and secondary analysis
A repeatable workflow
- Set Kroll docket email alerts and PACER notices.
- Log new objections, hearing notices, trust developments, and claims deadlines weekly.
- Review the document itself, not just the docket text.
- Record an "as-of" date with every note to keep an auditable trail.
BankruptcyData's platform can help law firms, investors, and credit teams consolidate court, stakeholder, timeline, and outcome research across connected proceedings, including docket monitoring and case alerts. It supplements official court records and does not replace them.
Verification checklist
- Docket entry number and filing date
- Operative document
- Court and party
- Procedural effect
- Whether a later order supersedes it
Docket monitoring is informational. It does not determine an individual claimant's treatment, legal deadline, claim value, or entitlement to recovery.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the current status of Exactech's lawsuit?
"The lawsuit" covers several matters. As of Oct. 20, 2026: the plan is effective, the MDL shows a stay with no verified new trial date, Florida status is unverified, and the TPG action has no verified ruling.
Is Exactech still in business?
Exactech assets, product lines, and employees transferred to Advita Ortho, LLC in the restructuring. The debtor does not appear to have continued simply as the same legal entity.
Was the Exactech total knee recalled?
FDA says the recall expanded to all Optetrak, Logic, and Truliant knees packaged in defective bags. Recall status alone does not establish an individual legal claim.
Did Exactech change its name?
No name change is readily confirmed in public materials. Advita Ortho is a successor owner of product lines, backed by funds affiliated with Strategic Value Partners, Stellex, and Greywolf. Check the plan and corporate filings for the exact transaction structure.
