Punitive Damages, Deterrent Effect, and the Constitution

Judge Rebecca F. Doherty entered an amended judgment on October 27, 2014, reducing a $6 billion award of punitive damages against Takeda and a $3 billion award against Eli Lilly in Allen v. Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. et al., Civil No. 6:12-cv-00064, a case in the Actos MDL, proceeding in the Western District of Louisiana,


Stryker Rejuvenate and ABGII Hip Implant Settlement News

A long-awaited settlement was reached between Howmedica Osteonics Corp., manufacturer of the Stryker Rejuvenate and ABG II hip implants, and representatives for persons injured by these medical devices. The settlement includes encompasses claims brought in both the federal MDL pending in the District of Minnesota ( In re: Stryker Rejuvenate and ABG II Hip Implant


Congress seeks explanation for generic drug price spike

Last month, members of the US Congress sent letters to 14 generic drug manufacturers, demanding explanation for the recent, dramatic spike in the price of some 20 generic drugs.  The Generic Pharmaceutical Association, a trade group representing the generic pharmaceutical industry, blames the increase on simple market forces, but many are suspicious of that response.


Are Surrogate Markers Too Low a Bar for FDA Approval?

The recent approval of a drug for use in combating leukemia by the US Food and Drug Administration has shed light on the relatively controversial, albeit common practice by that organization of using surrogate markers of efficacy for determining the benefit of a given drug or therapy.  Some believe this constitutes a low bar for


Case Report: Cymbalta Withdrawal Persists for 10 Months

In January, 2014, an article published in The Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences titled “Long-Term Duloxetine Withdrawal Syndrome and Management in a Depressed Patient” reported on a depressed patient who used Cymbalta (duloxetine), discontinued the drug, and faced long-term withdrawal symptoms. After using Cymbalta (60mg/day) for one year, the patient, called “Miss B” in


Xarelto Lawsuit Information

WARNING: Xarelto Linked to Fatal Internal Bleeding, No Reversal Agent Recently, the anticoagulant drug Xarelto (rivaroxaban) has come under increased scrutiny by both the United States Food and Drug Administration and medical professionals alike, citing an increased risk for internal bleeding.  Unfortunately, there is as yet no reversal agent for the drug. Due to inadequate




Surgical Removals of Mirena IUD Increasing

A number of lawsuits have arisen due to the complications caused by the use of intrauterine contraceptive devices (IUDs).  It has been shown that with the increase in popularity of IUDs, there has been a notable rise of cases where migration of the devices leads to a need for corrective surgery for the removal of


From Conservative Court to Activist Court in One Decision

When is a conservative court not a conservative court?  When it expands tort liability, apparently: Last month, in Wyeth v. Weeks, the Alabama Supreme Court adopted an aggressive new theory of tort liability that threatens to return Alabama to a litigation era so hostile to business and industry that the state was dubbed “Tort Hell.” In Weeks,