Up to ten thousand women have been told they can receive thousands of euro in compensation after being fitted with faulty breast implants.
It's thought that around 3,000 women had the faulty PIP implants fitted in Ireland - but that another 7,000 Irish women had the implants fitted abroad.
The implants were signed off as being safe by a German company, TUV Rheinland, but were later found to have contained industrial gel instead of medical-grade products.
Although PIP is now bankrupt, the women can still get compensation by taking legal action against TUV Rheinland - even if they have already had the implants removed, and even if the faulty implants have not ruptured.
French lawyer Olivier Aumaitre says anyone who had the faulty implants could receive a large cash payout.
"At this stage we can only have an estimate of the amount of compensation that each patient could reasonably expect," he said.
"But I think a figure of €10,000 - maybe €15,000 - is a reasonable figure at that time."
A court in Toulon found against TUV when a case was taken against them last year, but the matter has now been referred to an appeals court, with a hearing scheduled for December and a ruling expected in the first quarter of 2015.
Assuming the ruling is upheld, the compensation payments could then be processed within months - but any Irish women looking to become part of the lawsuit must take their case before next March, to comply with the five-year statute of limitations.
Dave Coleman of Dublin law firm Stanton Fisher - which is encouraging women to take the case - says despite the huge sums involved, there is no risk of TUV Rheinland suffering a similar fate to PIP and collapsing before compensation is paid.
"The extent of [TUV's] liability is a function of the numbers who come forward. TUV are not alone in this action; we are aware that they have significant and substantial insurance in this area."
He said around half of the potential claimants worldwide are based in South America.
"They are a very large company - they have a lot riding on this professionally - and they have the back-up of insurance."
Dozens of Irish women have already initiated legal action in Ireland against TUV, but Stanton Fisher says it intends to direct all of its cases through the French courts because of the higher prospects of a payout.
