Plavix Class Action Lawsuit-Like Consolidation Denied in Federal Court

Harvey Kirk

By Harvey Kirk
Posted December 19, 2011

ADD YOUR COMMENTS 1

[alert type=”general” accent_color=”” background_color=”” border_size=”1px” icon=”fa-asterisk” box_shadow=”yes” animation_type=”0″ animation_direction=”down” animation_speed=”0.1″ class=”” id=””]UPDATE: Saiontz & Kirk, P.A. is no longer accepting new Plavix cases.
This archived post is for informational purposes.[/alert]

A panel of federal judges has rejected an attempt by Bristol-Myers Squibb and Sanofi-Aventis to consolidate all Plavix lawsuits pending in various federal district courts as part of an MDL, or multi-district litigation, where they would have been managed in a manner similar to a Plavix class action lawsuit during pretrial litigation and discovery.

▸ Plavix Side Effects

Plavix lawyers representing plaintiffs who are pursuing injury lawsuits in federal court opposed the formation of an MDL, as it would have consolidated newer cases with older cases that have been pending for years.

There are currently only 12 Plavix cases pending in federal district courts, as most cases are being pursued in various state court systems. Of the federal lawsuits, ten of those cases are already pending before one judge in the District of New Jersey. Those 10 lawsuits were filed more than five years ago (between 2006 and 2007), and are already proceeding through the discovery process, with more than 3.5 million documents exchanged and depositions of most plaintiffs already completed.

Although Saiontz & Kirk, P.A. and other plaintiffs’ attorneys often support consolidation of complex pharmaceutical litigation as part of an MDL, where there will be coordinated handling and management during pretrial proceedings, such centralization was not appropriate in the Plavix litigation.

As part of an MDL, all of the lawsuits over Plavix filed in various federal district courts would be transferred to one judge, regardless of when they were filed or where the case was in the discovery process.

Many people equate an MDL with a Plavix class action, but the cases actually would have remained individual complaints, regardless of consolidation. If a Plavix settlement or other resolution was not reached during pretrial proceedings, the cases would be remanded back to the court where they were originally filed for separate trials. However, the coordination of discovery would have caused unreasonable delay in this particular litigation given the different stages of the discovery process the cases are in.

PLAVIX LAWSUITS

Since 2006, the lawyers of Saiontz & Kirk, P.A. have been reviewing potential lawsuits for Plavix users throughout the United States who have suffered serious and potentially fatal injuries as a result of taking this blood thinner. However, we are continuing to review and evaluate potential new cases.

If you, a friend or family member have taken Plavix and suffered a heart attack, stroke, internal bleeding, ulcers, TTP or death, request a free consultation and claim evaluation. All cases are taken on a contingency fee basis, meaning there are no fees unless a recovery is obtained.

CONTACT OUR LAWYERS ABOUT A PLAVIX LAWSUIT

1 Comment • Add Your Comments

  • Steve says:

    My Mother started coughing up blood while taking plavix in 2009 was hospitialized and did not recover , dying Aug.-12-2009 Her cause of death was pneumonia, and acute renal failure. We have been denied by two Law firms in Indianapolis because of the statue of limitations in Indiana…[?]

    Posted on October 1, 2012 at 9:49 am

Add Your Comments

  • Have Your Comments Reviewed by a Lawyer

    Provide contact information below and additional private comments if you want an attorney to contact you to review a potential case.

    The information below will not be published to this page.

  • NOTE: Providing information for review by an attorney does not form an attorney-client relationship.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.