Risperdal Lawsuit News: Arkansas Supreme Court Won’t Reconsider Decision to Overturn $1.2 Billion Risperdal Lawsuit Verdict, Bernstein Liebhard LLP Reports
New York, New York (PRWEB) April 25, 2014 -- As Risperdal lawsuits (http://www.risperdallawsuitcenter.com/) that allege the antipsychotic medication caused men and boys to develop gynecomastia, or male breast growth, continue to move forward in U.S. courts, Bernstein Liebhard LLP notes that the Arkansas Supreme Court has rejected a request by the state’s attorney general to reconsider its recent decision to overturn a $1.2 billion Risperdal lawsuit verdict. According to an order issued on April 24, 2014, the justices voted 4-3 not to revisit the March 20th decision. (Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc. et al v. Arkansas, Nos. 12-1058, 13-468)
“While this ruling is disappointing, plaintiffs who are pursuing Risperdal lawsuits that allege the drug caused gynecomastia should understand this ruling will not impact their cases, which will continue to move forward,” says Bernstein Liebhard LLP, a nationwide law firm representing the victims of defective drugs and medical devices. The Firm is currently offering free legal consultations to men and boys who allegedly developed gynecomastia due to their use of Risperdal.
Risperdal Gynecomastia Litigation
According to court records, the $1.2 billion verdict was levied against Johnson & Johnson and its Janssen Pharmaceuticals unit in April 2012, after an Arkansas jury found that the companies had violated state laws governing Medicaid fraud and deceptive trade practice by improperly marketing Risperdal. In overturning the verdict, the Supreme Court ruled the attorney general had misapplied the state’s Medicaid fraud law, which a majority of judges said only covers healthcare facilities, and not large pharmaceutical companies.
The Arkansas lawsuit is not the only legal action to have raised questions about the marketing tactics used to drive sales of Risperdal. On November 4, 2013, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced Johnson & Johnson and Janssen had agreed to pay $2.2 billion to settle civil and criminal charges involving the marketing of Risperdal and other medications. Under the terms of the settlement, the drug makers entered a guilty plea to one criminal misdemeanor charge involving the illegal promotion of Risperdal for use in elderly dementia patients. However, they did not admit wrongdoing in resolving civil claims that it improperly marketed Risperdal for use in children. (U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania, 04-cv-1529)
The marketing of Risperdal is also one of the issues being raised in more than 300 Risperdal lawsuits currently pending in a mass tort litigation underway in Pennsylvania’s Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas. Court documents indicate that these cases, which include dozens that allege a link between Risperdal and gynecomastia, claim that Risperdal was improperly marketed for off-label use in children long before it was approved for pediatric indications in 2006, and that the companies concealed side effects associated with the medication, including the association with male breast growth. (Risperdal Litigation, case number 100300296)
Risperdal users who developed gynecomastia may be entitled to compensation for their medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, emotional distress, and other injury-related damages. Learn more about filing a Risperdal lawsuit at Bernstein Liebhard LLP’s website. Free case reviews may also be obtained by calling the Firm directly at 800-511-5092.
*arkansasnews.com/news/arkansas/state-supreme-court-won-t-reconsider-risperdal-ruling, Arkansas Journal, March 24, 2014
About Bernstein Liebhard LLP
Bernstein Liebhard LLP is a New York-based law firm exclusively representing injured persons in complex individual and class action lawsuits nationwide since 1993. As a national law firm, Bernstein Liebhard LLP possesses all of the legal and financial resources required to successfully challenge billion dollar pharmaceutical and medical device companies. As a result, our attorneys and legal staff have been able to recover more than $3 billion on behalf of our clients. The Firm has been named by The National Law Journal to the Plaintiffs’ Hot List, recognizing the top plaintiffs firms in the country, for the past 12 consecutive years. Bernstein Liebhard LLP is the only firm in the country to be named to this prestigious list every year since it was first published in 2003.
Bernstein Liebhard LLP represents the victims of defective drugs and medical devices on a contingency-fee basis, and our clients are never expected to pay attorneys fees unless their case results in a successful recovery on their behalf. New York State’s contingency fee cap rules generally limit those fees to 33 1/3% of the total recovery. As a result, the Firm’s fees can be significantly lower than those assessed by attorneys in other states, which depending on the law may amount to as much as 40% or more of a plaintiff’s recovery.
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ATTORNEY ADVERTISING. © 2014 Bernstein Liebhard LLP. The law firm responsible for this advertisement is Bernstein Liebhard LLP, 10 East 40th Street, New York, New York 10016, 800-511-5092. Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome with respect to any future matter.
Contact Information:
Felecia L. Stern, Esq.
Bernstein Liebhard LLP
info (at) consumerinjurylawyers (dot) com
http://www.risperdallawsuitcenter.com/
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Felecia L. Stern, Risperdal Lawsuit Information Center, http://www.risperdallawsuitcenter.com/, +1 800-511-5092, [email protected]
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