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TTLA is accepting nominations for the Making a Difference Award. |
| TTLA, at the discretion of the Executive Committee, presents the Making a Difference Award to recognize and honor those clients whose cases demonstrate the critical role of the civil justice system in protecting the rights of Texas families. Any client (past or present) of a current TTLA member is eligible for this award. Click on the headline to learn more and download the nomination form. |
Products |
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Generic Drugs Proving Resistant to Damage Suits |
| Across the country, dozens of lawsuits against generic pharmaceutical companies are being dismissed because of a Supreme Court decision last year that said the companies did not have control over what their labels said and therefore could not be sued for failing to alert patients about the risks of taking their drugs. Now, what once seemed like a trivial detail — whether to take a generic or brand-name drug — has become the deciding factor in whether a patient can seek legal recourse from a drug company. The Supreme Court ruling affects potentially millions of people: nearly 80 percent of prescriptions in the United States are filled by a generic, and most states permit pharmacists to dispense a generic in place of a brand name. More than 40 judges have dismissed cases against generic manufacturers since the Supreme Court ruled last June, including some who dismissed dozens of cases consolidated under one judge. KATIE THOMAS, The New York Times 03/21/2012 | Read Article: The New York Times |
Hidden Data: Antipsychotic Drugs Are Less Effective Than Advertised |
| So-called atypical antipsychotic drugs have been blockbusters for the drug industry but, a new report finds that psychiatrists have not been given a full picture of these drugs, which include big sellers like Abilify, Zyprexa, Risperdal, and Seroquel. When seeking approval for eight atypical antipsychotic drugs, drug companies performed 24 studies, according to a FDA database. But four of the studies were never published in professional journals — and all four were unflattering for the drug in question. Brian Vastag, Blog, The Washington Post 03/21/2012 | Read Article: The Washington Post |
J&J Marketed Vaginal Mesh Implant Without U.S. Approval |
| Johnson & Johnson sold a vaginal mesh implant for three years before U.S. regulators approved the device, now the subject of more than 550 lawsuits by women who claim it injured them. J&J introduced the Gynecare Prolift device in March 2005. The FDA said it learned of the Prolift in 2007, when J&J sought approval for a related product. J&J’s unauthorized sales might cost it more to resolve lawsuits over the product. J&J already has endured recalls of artificial hip implants and over-the-counter drugs. Three J&J units have pleaded guilty in the past two years to bribery or illegal marketing of drugs. A fourth agreed to plead guilty in a marketing case. David Voreacos and Alex Nussbaum , Bloomberg 03/21/2012 | Read Article: Bloomberg |
Laws/Cases |
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Dating Websites to Add Safeguards After Lawsuit |
| A group of online dating companies have agreed to install safeguards to protect customers from sex offenders after a woman was sexually assaulted on a date and filed suit. Match.com, eHarmony and Spark Networks have agreed in the settlement, among other things, "to check subscribers against national sex registries, supply members with online safety tips, and provide a quick way to report abuses." In an agreement with the state of California, the companies will also submit reports of suspected criminal activity to the attorney general's office. Staff Report, San Francisco Chronicle 03/21/2012 | Read Article: San Francisco Chronicle |
ExxonMobil Should Pay $10M to Westwego Man |
| A Jefferson Parish jury has awarded $10 million in punitive damages to a Westwego man who says his seven years of cleaning ExxonMobil's offshore drilling pipes contaminated with radiation caused his prostate cancer. The jury also awarded John Oleszkowicz, 70, another $850,000 for his loss of enjoyment and the physical and mental impacts of cancer, which was diagnosed in May 2010. Paul Purpura, New Orleans Times-Picayune 03/21/2012 | Read Article: New Orleans Times-Picayune |
Healthcare |
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Grapevine Hospital Fined $9,000 Over Patient's Care |
| A Grapevine specialty hospital, Ethicus Hospital Grapevine, has been fined $9,000 by a state agency for failing to ensure that a patient's care was supervised and evaluated by a registered nurse, according to an agreed order for payment signed last month. The Texas Department of State Health Services fined Ethicus Hospital Grapevine after determining that a patient's pressure sore wasn't promptly treated. Darren Barbee, Star Telegram 03/21/2012 | Read Article: Star Telegram |
Labor/Employment |
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Justices Limit Suits Filed Over Family Leave Act Violations |
| By a 5-to-4 vote that split along ideological lines, the US Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled that state workers may not sue their employers for money for violating a part of the federal Family and Medical Leave Act. The decision prompted the term’s first dissent read from the bench, by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who said the justices in the majority had made it harder for women “to live balanced lives, at home and in gainful employment.” Adam Liptak, The New York Times 03/21/2012 | Read Article: The New York Times |
Wrongful Death |
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Girl's Death at Baylor Frat Party Spurs Lawsuit |
| A lawsuit has been filed against the Sigma Chi fraternity and a bar in Waco, Texas, over the 2010 death of a 19-year-old girl from alcohol poisoning. The girl was reportedly served between 10 and 17 drinks at the bar in a two-hour period and died later that night at a Waco hospital. The suit is seeking unspecified damages. Nina Mandell , New York Daily News 03/21/2012 | Read Article: New York Daily News |
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