Bob Kerpsack serving as counsel for Ohio Vioxx plaintiff class
Columbus, Ohio

Comments

A Master Complaint filed recently in the federal Vioxx multidistrict litigation designates attorney Robert Kerpsack as counsel for the Ohio plaintiff class of victims. (Learn more about Ohio Vioxx lawyer Bob Kerpsack.) In the Master Complaint, federal Vioxx lawsuits from across the country are combined to seek court certification of Vioxx victim classes for each of the fifty states. Mr. Kerpsack represents the Ohio plaintiff class representatives who are alleging in a federal lawsuit that they and other Ohio citizens were injured by taking the prescription drug Vioxx.

The federal Vioxx multidistrict litigation (MDL) is assigned to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, which is located in New Orleans. Approximately 8,250 federal lawsuits are combined in the Vioxx MDL. Representative MDL cases in each of the following categories are proceeding to jury trials: 1) heart attack with long term use; 2) heart attack with short term use; 3) stroke; and 4) cardiovascular injury occurring after labeling changes in April 2002. Following the conclusion of these trials, a global settlement of all of the federal Vioxx cases may be attempted.

The first Vioxx jury trial occurred in a federal lawsuit that was filed before the MDL was established. In that case, a Texas jury handed down a $253 million verdict for the death of a man in his late fifties who took Vioxx for about eight months. Evidence presented during the trial suggested that the manufacturer of Vioxx, Merck & Co., engaged in aggressive and misleading marketing practices.

Approximately 19,000 Vioxx lawsuits are also pending in state courts across the country. Most of these lawsuits are filed in New Jersey because the corporate headquarters of the drug's manufacturer is located in Whitehouse Station, New Jersey. In one New Jersey trial, the jury awarded a 77-year-old heart attack victim $13.5 million, which included $9 million in punitive damages for conduct by the Vioxx manufacturer that showed a "wanton and willful disregard of another's rights." Vioxx was removed from the U.S. market on September 30, 2004, at the urging of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). If you or a family member have taken Vioxx and have experienced side effects such as blood clots, heart attacks, strokes, or sudden death, please call or email Ohio Vioxx lawyer Bob Kerpsack today.