Federal Court Rules in Favor of Plaintiff and Sends Pradaxa Case Back to Las Vegas for Trial
Las Vegas, Nevada (PRWEB) October 17, 2013 -- Today the law firms of Edward M. Bernstein & Associates, The Michael Brady Lynch Firm and Peiffer, Rosca, Abdullah & Carr announced the successful remand of a Las Vegas Pradaxa bleeding death case to Clark County, Nevada. By Order dated October 11, 2013, The Honorable David Herndon, who is overseeing Pradaxa MDL 2385 in the Southern District of Illinois, remanded the case Kathryn Zaite v. Carla J. Long, et al., back to the 8th District of Clark County, Nevada, where it was originally filed.
Ms. Zaite brought this action against the manufacturer of Pradaxa, Boehringer Ingelheim, and one of its local sales representatives, on behalf of the estate of her deceased mother, Irma Toth. The Zaite case alleges that Boehringer Ingelheim knew that there was an increased bleeding risk associated with the drug Pradaxa and failed to adequately warn the medical community or the public at large of those risks, ultimately leading to Ms. Toth’s injury and death.
"After a hard fought briefing battle, the Zaite Pradaxa case is rightfully back in Nevada state court," said Patti Wise, Esq., managing attorney of Edward M. Bernstein & Associates." As a Las Vegas resident, Irma Toth was owed the right have her case decided by members of her community of Clark County."
The German drug company Boehringer Ingelheim has sold Pradaxa in the United States since October 2010. The company claims that the drug has achieved “blockbuster” status, with over $1 billion in yearly sales and use in more than 70 countries. Unfortunately, reports as early as late 2010 indicated that Pradaxa may have serious health risks.
On December 7, 2011, the FDA warned that it was investigating Pradaxa for more injury or death reports than expected, http://www.fda.gov/drugs/drugsafety/ucm282724.htm. USA Today reported that in 2011, the FDA received reports of 3,781 adverse side effects and 542 deaths among Pradaxa users, more than all other medications,http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/health/story/2012-08-19/pradaxa-blood-thinner-lawsuit/57134628/1 . In September of 2012, The Journal for The American Medical Association warned that the FDA may have rushed approval of the drug Pradaxa, overlooking key side effects like internal bleeding,http://jama.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=1356361 .
"Due to the uncontrollable bleeding brought about by Pradaxa and the lack of any effective reversal agent, Irma Toth suffered a terrible and wholly preventable death," said Michael Brady Lynch, Esq., of The Michael Brady Lynch Firm and co-counsel on the Zaite case. "Once a bleed on Pradaxa occurs, there is almost nothing a doctor or hospital can do to stop it." Lynch is also a member of the Plaintiff's Steering Committee (PSC) of the Pradaxa MDL 2385, which oversees Pradaxa cases filed in federal court.
The Zaite case was originally filed in Clark Country but then was transferred to federal court at the request of the defendants. A remand order is issued when a judge agrees that a case rightfully belongs in the state court in which it was originally filed. In the Zaite case, defendant Boehringer Ingelheim argued aggressively to prevent the Zaite case from returning to Clark County.
"The defendants fought tooth and nail to prevent the return of the Zaite case to Clark County," said Joseph Peiffer, Esq., a partner at Peiffer, Rosca, Abdullah & Carr. "We look forward to a trial setting in Las Vegas where Irma Toth's peers can judge the conduct of Boehringer Ingelheim and their dangerous drug Pradaxa."
For more information please contact us at http://www.EdBernstein.com or 702-240-0000.
Edward Bernstein, Edward M. Bernstein and Associates, http://www.EdBernstein.com, +1 702-471-5743, [email protected]
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