A little knowledge is a dangerous thing. A jack of all trades is a master of none. These cutesy little phrases throw some derision toward one who possesses some knowledge in a bunch of areas. Representing drug and device companies in litigation can make a lawyer reject the negative interpretation of these phrases. We have
Med Mal Case Dives Deep Into Device Regulation
Reading through Obermeier v. Northwestern Memorial Hosp., __ N.E.3d __, 2019 IL App. (1st) 170553 (Ill. App. Div. June 28, 2019), reminded us of scrolling through television channels in the middle of the day with time to kill. The opinion started off talking about the basic medical facts of the case and we were
Common Sense Cert Petition On CAFA
We have written a number of times on CAFA, the Class Action Fairness Act. The decisions and subjects we have covered can be pretty technical and even numerical. After all, one of the central provisions of CAFA has a number in it: a “mass action” is one “in which monetary relied claims of 100
Smoked Turkey For Barbecue Season
Our days of the week are mostly named based on Norse mythology, but our months are firmly Roman. May is named after the deity Maia, whose Roman version was honored for her role in the growth of plants. Her cousin Juno, the queen of the Roman gods, gave us the name for June. In their
Double Dose Of Delaware Summary Judgment
There will come a time when there is no such thing as the local radio station. Not only will transmission not occur via radio waves, but there will be nothing local about it. There also may be no banter from the DJ, short for “disc jockey”–a reference to placing flat, round pieces of plastic called
The Ripples Of The Fosamax Reversal
If we were to recap briefly our reactions to the Levine decision and ten years of decisions attempting to apply it, then we might say something like this. The Court’s creation of a clear evidence standard for conflict preemption in the context of warnings claims for branded drugs was both novel and misguided. The Court
The First Circuit Creates Havoc By Ignoring Facts And An Elephant In The Room
We all know the phrase “the elephant in the room.” There are some things that do not get mentioned that are so obviously relevant that silence about them, or willful ignorance of them, can be humorous or frustrating. Based on our not-so-extensive research, we see that the origin of the fairly widespread use of this
Nutty Cosmetic Class Crushed
We may not know much about skin care, but we know a thing or two about labeling claims. Whether for a drug, a device, a food, a cosmetic, or some other product, it is necessary to apply some common sense in determining what is or is not in a product’s labeling should give rise
The DOJ Lashes Out at Qui Tam Abuse
What follows is a guest post from Joe Metro and Andy Bernasconi of Reed Smith. Andy has some experience with the guest post gig (here and here), and Joe has finally heeded the call to share his fraud and abuse expertise with our readers. That particular expertise is not in abusing the legal
Trying To Make A Food Labeling Claim Stick
Our last post talked about carbohydrate-rich Thanksgiving food. Today, we are talking about a putative class action on the labeling of certain diet foods, particularly in regard to “net carbs” and sugar alcohols. This was not planned. Colella v. Atkins Nutritionals, Inc., No. 17-cv-5867 (KAM), 2018 WL 6437082 (E.D.N.Y. Dec. 7, 2018), on the