2021 is almost over. Before 2021 – indeed, before the last half of 2021 – practically nobody other than stargazers had ever heard of “omicron,” unless someone was part of some fraternity or sorority. Now everybody has. The omicron viral variant demonstrates, once again in real time (as had the delta variant before it)
Search results for: pradaxa
A Defense-Friendly Take on Albrecht
By Andrew Tauber on
This blog has discussed Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp. v. Albrecht, 139 S. Ct. 1668 (2019), and its progeny on multiple occasions. We provided a quick take when Albrecht was issued; discussed the decision’s possible ramifications here and here; expressed consternation at certain parts of the decision; reported here and here on how…
Spoliation Is A Two-Way Street, Or Should Be
By Eric Alexander on
We are careful when discussing discovery sanctions, particularly spoliation, for a simple reason. The companies we represent that make medical products tend to have allegations about failing to produce discoverable information in the course of the litigation against them. Indeed, there is a style of litigating against drug and device companies, and other corporate defendants,…
Reflections on Turning 65
By Bexis on
Bexis just turned 65 (on 1/25/2021) – the classic retirement age. That’s an occasion to look back and evaluate what’s gone on over the course of an entire legal career. So how have we done, as defense lawyers, over the course of our entire careers, at our primary job – which is to prevail for…
Tort Pandemic Countermeasures − The Ten Best Prescription Drug/Medical Device Decisions of 2020
By Bexis on
With 2020 mercifully coming to an end, it is once again time for the Drug & Device Law Blog’s top ten decisions of the year. In keeping with COVID-19’s dominance of 2020, we present our top ten in the context of countermeasures against another social ill – the tort pandemic raging across much of the…
Short And Sweet Preemption Decision
By Eric Alexander on
Long ago, when we first started representing the makers of prescription pharmaceuticals, it was said that people did not tend to sue over life-saving medications. Contraceptives, pain medications, obesity medications, diabetes medications, psychiatric medications, and many others were fair game, even if the risk-benefit calculus for an individual patient might involve major benefits on one…
Quasi-Guest Post – Plaintiffs’ Beast of Burden: Adverse Event Reports Precede Causation
By Bexis on
We’re calling this a “quasi” guest post because the author, Reed Smith‘s Dean Balaes, is actually trying out to join our blogging team. This is his inaugural post, of what we hope will be many more. This particular post addresses the causation aspects of a case, Gayle v. Pfizer, Inc., ___ F.…
On Newly Acquired Information
By Bexis on
We’ve noticed quite a few prescription drug preemption decisions lately involving “newly acquired information.” That’s because the Supreme Court doubled down in Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp. v. Albrecht, 139 S. Ct. 1668 (U.S. 2019), on the boundary of impossibility preemption being set by a defendant’s ability to utilize the FDA’s “changes being effected”…
Response/Rebuttal to Plaintiffs’ Albrecht Arguments
By Bexis on
Not too long ago, our search keyed to Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp. v. Albrecht, 139 S. Ct. 1668 (2019), picked up the following article in Trial Magazine: Abaray & Harman, “Navigating Preemption After Merck,” 56 Trial 20 (Jan. 2020). For anybody who doesn’t know, Trial is the house organ of the American…
Elysian Fields − The Top Ten Best Prescription Drug/Medical Device Decisions of 2019
By Bexis on
Welcome to our annual Elysium tour, in which we electronically acknowledge the sweet nectar of victory flowing from the top ten drug/device product liability decisions of the year. It’s time to salute those fortunate decisions that brought the judicial Midas touch to our clients’ cases. We echo what we said last year: “we’re looking…