Product Liability

October 25, 2009

Nurse Alleges Dangerous Yaz Birth Control Drug “Altered My Life”

Candice Atkinson filed a personal injury lawsuit against Bayer Corporation and Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals, Inc., for severe side effects from the prescription birth control drug Yaz, manufactured and marketed by Bayer. The complaint was filed in the Superior Court of New Jersey, where Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals, Inc., is located.

Candice Atkinson was prescribed Yaz to treat acne skin condition, and the South Carolinian developed life-threatening blood clots and other serious side effects

October 24, 2009

U.S. to Press China on Drywall Litigation

by Dr. Shezad Malik

The chairman of the Consumer Product Safety Commission said she would ask China to help pay for the billions of dollars in damage to U.S. homes blamed on Chinese-made drywall.

“I will find out if any discussions are going on in China about the costs, are they prepared to participate in providing funds, and what would it take for that to occur,” CPSC Chairman Inez Tenenbaum said ahead of a trip to China next week for a biennial U.S.-China consumer product safety summit.

October 23, 2009

Jury Awards $13.5 M in Product Liability Faulty-Fan Death

by Dr. Shezad Malik

A Philadelphia jury has issued a $13.5 million verdict against Lasko Products Inc., a West Chester fan manufacturer, after a defective fan motor sparked a 2005 house fire in Mount Airy that killed a 7-year-old boy.

The award was issued after a 13-day trial in the death of Joshua Foster, who was killed on June 14, 2005, when a fan in his mother’s bedroom triggered a blaze in the home. The child died of burns and smoke inhalation.

The fire was caused by a faulty Chinese-made motor in the portable fan, built in 2000, and the defect in the model was discovered in 1999.

October 19, 2009

Zometa Lawsuit Against Novartis Pharmaceuticals Underway

by Dr. Shezad Malik

A lawsuit against a Swiss pharmaceutical company went to trial last week in Missoula, but a verdict in the case could have national significance for hundreds of plaintiffs suing the company in a mass tort.

Peggy L. Stevens of Missoula filed suit against Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. last year, alleging the company was professionally negligent when it failed to disclose health risks associated with one of its medications.

Stevens, who has lymphoma, developed severe dental and jaw-related problems after taking Zometa, a bone-strengthening medication manufactured by Novartis. Her attorneys say the company knew patients taking Zometa were vulnerable to a degenerative jaw disorder called osteonecrosis, particularly those patients who undergo invasive dental procedures, like root canals or tooth extractions.

October 18, 2009

Dallas Texas Yaz Lawsuits and Side Effects

by Dr. Shezad Malik

The United States Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation issued its order on October 1, 2009, establishing MDL No. 2100 for individual lawsuits filed by women who have been injured as a result of their ingestion of Yasmin, Yaz and Ocella oral contraceptive products. All of the cases pending in federal courts will be transferred to the Southern District of Illinois. The initial transfer order includes 32 cases that have been filed by patients in California, Georgia, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, and Wisconsin.

All of the cases involve allegations that the popular birth control pills containing the new progestin drospirenone increase the risk of serious life-threatening health problems, such as heart attacks, strokes, pulmonary embolisms, deep vein thrombosis, gallbladder disease and sudden death from Yaz or Yasmin.

October 18, 2009

GlaxoSmithKline Buried Paxil Birth Defect Reports, Jury told

by Dr. Shezad Malik

In the first Paxil birth defect case to go to trial, jurors heard testimony late last month that manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) was aware of reports of birth defects from mothers who took the antidepressant while pregnant but withheld the information from the FDA and consumers. (Kilker v. SmithKline Beecham Corp., No. 070201813 (Pa., Philadelphia Co. Com. Pleas filed Feb. 20, 2007).).

In his opening statement, Sean Patrick Tracey of Houston told the jurors that they would see internal GSK documents that would show the company had reports of Paxil-related congenital abnormalities that go back to the drug’s entry into the market in 1993. These were documents previously under seal that “the FDA hasn’t seen, the United States Congress hasn’t seen, and that no jury has ever laid their eyes on before,” he said.

Tracey said one of the documents would show that a GSK official discussed “burying” negative studies linking Paxil to birth defects. Another would show that GSK told officials to avoid disclosing the risks. “GSK said if there is any doubt, take it out,” he told the jury.

October 18, 2009

Paxil Birth Defects Trial Now Waiting for Jury’s Verdict

by Dr. Shezad Malik

The first of more than 600 lawsuits claiming the makers of the antidepressant Paxil hid evidence that its drug caused birth defects in order to boost profits is now waiting for a Philadelphia jury’s verdict.

The lawsuit involves allegations from Michelle David, who claims drug maker GlaxoSmithKline concealed negative study results linking Paxil to a life-threatening heart malformation in newborns of women who took the drug during pregnancy. The company marketed Paxil for treating pregnant women with anxiety, despite knowing about the apparent connection to birth defects, David contends.

David took Paxil while pregnant with her son, Lyam Kilker, who was born with life-threatening heart defects. The boy is now four and has fully recovered after being hospitalized as a newborn and undergoing multiple surgeries to repair his heart.

Glaxo’s lawyers argued during the trial that there is not sufficient evidence to prove that use of Paxil caused Lyam’s birth defects.

October 18, 2009

Statute of Limitations for Texas Yaz Product Liability Lawsuits

by Dr. Shezad Malik

Yaz, manufactured by Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals, Inc., is a combination birth control pill containing drospirenone and ethinyl estradiol. Yaz is marketed not only as a contraceptive pill, but as a proven treatment for premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD), a condition with severe emotional and physical premenstrual symptoms. Yaz also is marketed as an effective treatment for moderate acne.

The YAZ birth control pill, manufactured and marketed by Bayer Pharmaceuticals has been linked to a number of serious, life-threatening side effects.

There is a limited period of time in which to bring a Texas Yaz lawsuit. This time period is referred to as a “statute of limitations”. If Yaz lawsuits are not filed before the statutory deadline you may lose the right to bring a claim for compensation.

A statute of limitations is a law that limits the amount of time a person has to file a lawsuit. There are several factors that affect the statutory deadline for filing your Yaz lawsuit. Some of these factors include:

The state where the injury occurred, the type of injury, the state where the lawsuit is filed, the age of the person bringing the lawsuit, whether the claim is a wrongful death lawsuit.

October 16, 2009

Home Insurers Discontinuing Chinese Drywall Policies

by Dr. Shezad Malik

The Ivory family’s dreams of a relaxing retirement on Florida’s Gulf Coast were put on hold when they discovered their new home had been built with Chinese drywall that emits sulfuric fumes and corrodes pipes. It got worse when they asked their insurer for help — and not only was their claim denied, but they’ve been told their entire policy won’t be renewed.

Thousands of homeowners nationwide who bought new houses constructed from the defective building materials are finding that insurers drop policies or send notices of non-renewal based on the presence of the Chinese drywall.

October 16, 2009

Yaz / Yasmin MDL Consolidation Update

by Dr. Shezad Malik

A panel of judges ordered that all federal lawsuits over problems with Yaz and Yasmin birth control pills will be consolidated into an MDL, or multidistrict litigation, for pretrial proceedings in the Southern District of Illinois.

This is not a Yaz / Yasmin class action. Each Yaz lawsuit or Yasmin lawsuit will remain an individual claim and if a settlement is not agreed upon during pretrial litigation, each plaintiff will still have a jury will determine the amount of damages they are entitled to in their case.

Read the JPML Order here.

MDL No. 2100 — IN RE: Yasmin and Yaz (Drospirenone) Marketing and Sales Practices and Products Liability Litigation — Assigned To Southern District of Illinois.