Product Liability â€" Drugs and Medical Devices

Product Liability — Drugs and Medical Devices
Drug companies often laud the high cost of drug development and the complicated, long-term U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval process as guarantees against the creation of unsafe drugs.

However, events such as the Vioxx disaster of the early 2000s and the $2.3 billion fine Pfizer paid in September 2009 for off-label marketing practices (the largest criminal fine ever levied in the United States for that illegal practice) contradict those claims.

Other serious problems uncovered in recent years include:
  • According to one recent news report, as many as 22,000 lives (1,000 a month) could have been saved if the Food and Drug Administration had moved more quickly to take the heart surgery drug Trasylol off the market after questions were raised about its safety.
  • TAP Pharmaceuticals pleaded guilty in 2001 and agreed to pay $875 million to settle criminal and civil charges over its fraudulent marketing of Lupron, a drug used for treatment of prostate cancer.
  • GlaxoSmithKline was fined $2.5 million for consumer fraud in 2004 in relation to its marketing of the drug Paxil — less than 10 percent of the $2.7 billion in yearly Paxil sales at that time.

Problems extend to medical devices as well. ReGen Biologics Inc.'s knee device, Menaflex, was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in December 2009 under a fast track process known as 510(K). New leadership at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) now argues that the approval was granted over the objections of FDA scientists due to "extreme" pressure on Capitol Hill.

If you feel you are the victim of an unsafe drug or medical device, the experienced attorneys at the Law Offices of James Scott Farrin may be able to help. We understand the financial, physical and emotional trauma that accompanies a product liability claim. We represent our clients to the best of our ability, allowing them to concentrate on healing and getting on with their lives.

Pharmaceutical and medical device claims are complex. They often involve the interpretation of medical documents and interviews with engineers, researchers or doctors. Each attorney in our product liability team has at least 12 years of experience protecting injured clients. We have helped thousands of people with their product liability cases. Cases we have been involved with include Baycol, Vioxx and Fen-Phen. Call us today for a free case review and confidential conversation about your potential claim.

The Law Offices of James Scott Farrin works on a contingency fee arrangement.  That is another way of saying that the attorney's fee is based on a percentage of the gross recovery.  While a case may have fees and costs associated with it, there is no hourly or flat fee charged by the firm.  Simply put, if you do not recover compensation from your claim, there is no attorney's fee.  This allows the firm to bear the burden of investigating and pursuing your claim, which allows you to focus on your well-being.

In certain cases, such as class actions, the court may specifically set the attorney fee, but in those situations the fee will still not exceed the contingent percentage in the firm's fee agreement.


Sources:
•    "Drug Companies and Doctors: A Story of Corruption," The NY Review of Books, Jan. 15, 2009.
•    "FDA Rips Approval of Medical Devices," Wall Street Journal, Sept. 25, 2009.
•    "Science, Safety and the Legacy of the Vioxx Disaster Today," D.W. Light, provided by the American Sociological Association based on Light's presentation at the annual meeting on Aug. 3, 2008.
•    "One Thousand Lives A Month," CBS News - 60 Minutes, Feb. 17, 2008.