Federal Judge Preliminarily Approves New Diet Drug Settlement Amendment - Baron & Budd attorney Ellen Presby appointed to new committee overseeing new Fen Phen settlement amendment
The federal judge presiding over the American Home Products (AHP) Fen-Phen diet drug settlement preliminarily approved a new amendment to the settlement agreement.
DALLAS, TX (PRWEB) September 16, 2004 -- The federal judge presiding over the American Home Products (AHP) Fen-Phen diet drug settlement preliminarily approved a new amendment to the settlement agreement.
The 7th Amendment modifies the national diet drug settlement between Wyeth and victims of the diet drug Fen-Phen. Wyeth manufactured the Pondimin component of Fen-Phen before the drugs removal from the market in 1997, when a Mayo Clinic report linked the drug to serious heart and lung damage.
Ellen Presby of Baron & Budd is appointed to 7th Amendment Liaison Committee.
In granting preliminary approval of the amendment, Federal Judge Harvey Bartle III appointed Fen-Phen attorney Ellen Presby of Baron & Budd to the committee that will oversee the new Fen-Phen settlement amendment. If the 7th Amendment attains final judicial approval, Wyeth will pay $1.275 billion of additional funding to compensate Fen-Phen victims. Baron & Budd attorney Ellen Presby, along with other members of the newly created 7th Amendment Liaison Committee, will participate in administering the $1.275 billion infusion of new diet drug settlement money.
The AHP Settlement Trust will not administer the new settlement money.
Before the 7th Amendment, the AHP Settlement Trust was responsible for disbursing the diet drug settlement benefits paid by Wyeth.
The AHP Settlement Trust was established in 2001, and has paid only a small fraction of the settlement benefits promised, leaving most Fen-Phen victims empty handed. The AHP Settlement Trust has been criticized for its failure to process and pay claims according to the terms and deadlines set in the original diet drug settlement agreement.
Under the 7th Amendment, the new settlement money will not be received or processed by the AHP Settlement Trust. Rather, the $1.275 billion will be distributed by a new fund administrator who will work with the 7th Amendment Liaison Committee and Plaintiffs Class Counsel. Most Fen-Phen victims who have filed claims with the AHP Settlement Trust will have the option of participating in the 7th Amendment or continuing with the Trust.
Qualifying participants in the 7th Amendment will receive guaranteed payments if they need heart valve surgery in the future.
In addition to the new settlement money to be paid by Wyeth, the 7th Amendment provides other advantages to Fen-Phen victims. If individuals participating in the 7th Amendment need heart valve surgery in the future, Wyeth will pay benefits to those who qualify regardless of whether the AHP Settlement Trust has exhausted its funding. According to estimates, the AHP Settlement Trust will not have enough money to pay everyone who has filed a claim with the Trust. Without the 7th Amendment, Fen-Phen victims who need heart valve surgery will receive nothing from the AHP Settlement Trust once it runs out of money.
AHP Settlement Trust claimants will receive notice packets.
Federal Judge Bartle also has ordered that those who have registered with the AHP Settlement Trust will receive a notice packet to explain the terms of the new diet drug settlement amendment. A hearing on the 7th Amendments fairness will be held in Federal Judge Bartles court at 9:30 a.m. on January 18, 2005. The diet drug MDL web site, http://fenphen.cpcourt.com/, posted Federal Judge Bartles orders and a copy of the 7th Amendment.
About Baron & Budd, P.C.
Since 1977, the law firm of Baron & Budd, P.C., has championed the rights of people and communities harmed by corporate misconduct. With over 70 attorneys and offices in Texas, Illinois, Ohio, Louisiana, and New York, Baron & Budd enjoys a national reputation as a leader of the plaintiffs bar. The firm represents individuals injured by asbestos, benzene, other toxic substances, and unsafe pharmaceuticals; water authorities seeking clean-up costs for drinking water contamination; securities investors defrauded by corporate wrongdoing; and consumers in class actions. For more information, call 1-800-222-2766 or visit www.baronandbudd.com
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