- Asbestos
- Class Actions
- Commercial Litigation
- Defective Products
- Drug Injury
- Personal Injury
- Securities Fraud
- Toxic Exposure
- Accutane Side Effects
- Darvon and Darvocet
- DePuy Hip Recall
- Fosamax Femur Fractures
- Muscle Injury
- Sleeping Pill Dangers
- SSRI Birth Defects
- Topamax Birth Defects
- Transvaginal Surgical Mesh and Bladder Slings
- Tylenol Liver Damage
- Zocor/Simvastatin
Pending Settlements
Archives : 2011 : October
Drug Injury Specialists Warn of Actos Side Effects
Following negative media attention and a swarm of recent pharmaceutical drug litigation involving the medication, the European Commission has requested that the European Medicines Agency (EMA) clarify its position on the use of Actos. Both France and Germany prohibited the diabetes drug after reports indicated that it increased patients’ risk of heart attack and bladder cancer. Although the FDA did not officially ban Actos in the U.S., it added warnings to its label. Now, the EMA has asserted that while the drug can be a “valid treatment” for type 2 diabetes, it should only be prescribed when other medications have failed. Furthermore, the agency urges doctors who prescribe Actos to closely monitor their patients. Read the full story.
The experienced pharmaceutical injury attorneys in Seeger Weiss’ drug injury practice are closely following developments about reported Actos side effects. To learn more, visit our Actos Investigation Page.
Merck Faces Another Fosamax Drug Injury Suit
In an Illinois circuit court, two women have filed a drug injury lawsuit against pharmaceutical giant, Merck Sharp & Dohme Corporation. Beth Tobias and Margaret Freiberg both took Fosamax, a drug manufactured by Merck to help prevent fractures in women with osteoporosis. However, both Tobias and Freiberg allege that Fosamax had the opposite effect on them, weakening their bones and actually increasing their risk of bone injury. Read the full story.
Calling on our experience in drug injury cases, including a $4.85 billion dollar settlement in a case involving another Merck drug, Vioxx, Seeger Weiss is currently taking on new Fosamax cases. Visit our Fosamax Investigation Page to learn more.
Former DePuy Spokesperson Joins Class Action Against Company
At the beginning of this month, yet another wrinkle was added to the recent news coverage on DePuy Orthaepedics’ controversial Artificial Surface Replacement (ASR), a hip implant for patients suffering from severe arthritis. In this story, the
United Kingdom Press Association reports that retired gymnast Penny Brown, who appeared in ads for the product after she received a hip replacement herself, is now joining a class action against her former employer. Brown and the 300 other patients involved claim that wore out prematurely leading to further complications or – as in Brown’s case, – the need for additional surgery.
Seeger Weiss is currently investigating claims of patients who were harmed by the hip replacement. For more information, please visit our DePuy Hip Replacement page.
UK Supreme Court Rules that Asbestos Victims be Compensated
Yesterday the UK Supreme Court denied an appeal of a Scottish law, and ruled that victims of asbestos exposure who develop pleural plaques should in fact be allowed to receive compensation for their harm. The insurance companies that brought the appeal argued that since pleural plaques don’t cause any symptoms, they should not have to pay the claims of those who claim to suffer from the condition. However, the Supreme Court sided with Scottish ministers who noted that pleural plaques can lead to more serious diseases like lung cancer, mesothelioma and asbestosis. As a result of the ruling, the insurance companies are likely to have to pay claimants between 7 and 9 million pounds (about 11 to 14 million dollars). One of the victims involved in this case, former shipyard worker John Ferguson said, “I now have pleural plaques and that hangs over my head. I’ve got to get on with my life, but I don’t know how much life I’ve got left in me – I’d like to see people higher up pay for this in some way.”
Both the effects of asbestos exposure and the difficulties of receiving just compensation persist in the United States as well. Click here to learn more about Seeger Weiss’ ongoing asbestos investigation.
Click here to watch the court’s decision and read the full BBC article.
LA Times: FDA Warns Against High Doses of Zocor
In a Los Angeles Times article from the beginning of this summer, writer Chris Woolston reports a recent FDA announcement to include new labels on Zocor that will warn doctors against prescribing his doses of the medication. As Woolston notes, the FDA’s decision came after the drug, which is prescribed for lowering cholestorol, was shown to cause injuries to muscles that can potentially be fatal. Seeger Weiss is currently investigating claims of patients who have been harmed by Zocor.
Learn More about our Zocor Investigation
NBC News with Brian Williams Reports Dangers of DePuy Hip Implants
Last week, an Australian Senate Committee discovered that DePuy Orthaepedics waited until three years after they learned of reported problems with their metal-on-metal hip implants to remove them from the market. In a segment on NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams on Tuesday, Nancy Snyderman elaborates the dangers of this type of hip implant, using the DePuy recall as a case study. Watch the clip below.
If you feel you’ve been hurt by your DePuy ASR hip implant, visit our DePuy Orthaepedics Investigation Page to learn about steps you can take to seek justice.
Testimony Reveals that DePuy Took Three Years to Recall Implants
During a hearing before an Australian Senate committee last week, it was revealed that it took three years after problems with DePuy’s ASR hip were detected for the hip implant to be removed from the Australian market. Orthopedic expert Stephen Graves testified that it was first noticed that the metals in the product were poisoning patients in 2006. The implant was not removed from the market in Australia until late 2009, and DePuy did not issue a recall in the United States until August 2010.
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