Injury Lawyer in Brooklyn: Defective Drug’s Effects Impact Your Case
Some major pharmaceutical companies are under fire for alleged defective drugs. The cases involve medications that have been prescribed for years as well as drugs that were only recently approved for patient use. Meanwhile, thousands of consumers across several states have complained about these products.
When you look at these cases, you can see how the alleged effects of the defective drugs impact settlements and compensations. If you have similar complaints, you might want to consult a practiced injury lawyer in Brooklyn who can help you understand how big the stakes are depending on how severely the drug affected your life. If numerous other patients have suffered what you experienced or have sued a drug company with the same complaints, you can review what outcomes you can expect from your case.
Take the case of a former quality assurance manager for British pharmaceutical GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) who revealed that the firm’s plant in Cidra mixed up some products and still sold the tainted medicines. These included popular drugs like antidepressants and diabetes medicines. Patients from several states who might have received the adulterated drugs filed complaints. GSK pled guilty to the allegations and settled $750 million in damages, with about $436.4 million going to the federal government of the U.S., $163.6 million for each participating state (which included New York), and $96 million for the whistleblower.
In another case, more than 8,000 legal complaints were filed against Takeda Pharmaceutical for their diabetes treatment, Actos. The drug is believed to have been responsible for Louisiana, Illinois, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania patients developing bladder cancer. The settlement deal is expected to reach $2.3 billion, with each plaintiff potentially receiving around $275,000 (or even more if their loved one’s cancer aggressively spread or caused death after the drug was taken).
Finally hundreds of patients claim to have developed pancreatic cancer due to taking the fairly new drug Januvia (sitagliptin) by Merck and other incretin mimetics drugs. These medications are prescribed to Type 2 diabetes to stabilize their blood sugar. Similar to the Actos bladder cancer cases, claims for wrongful death and other reliefs can yield hundreds of thousands of dollars per lawsuit.
These claims are by no means a walk in the park, even if you believe you have a strong case. Be sure to consult a skilled Brooklyn personal injury attorney, such as someone from The Law Offices of Joseph Lichtenstein, so you can put together the evidence you need to support your legal complaints and defend your case against major corporate entities that may intimidate you in and out of court.
Sources:
Glaxo Agrees to Pay $750 Million to Settle Defective-Drug Suit, Bloomberg
Actos Bladder Cancer Global Settlement Imminent, The Legal Examiner
Januvia Cancer Lawsuit Claims Drug Company Concealed Risk, Injury Lawyer News
Defective Drugs Law – Drug Products Liability Law, HG.org