Lipitor Lawsuits Move Forward, with Federal Judicial Panel Set to Consider Consolidation of Lipitor Diabetes Claims Later This Week, Bernstein Liebhard LLP Reports
New York, New York (PRWEB) January 28, 2014 -- For the second time in recent months, the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (JPML) will consider establishing a federal multidistrict litigation for all federally-filed Lipitor lawsuits (http://www.lipitorlawsuitcenter.com/) involving allegations that the statin drug caused users to develop Type 2 diabetes. According to court documents, the Panel will take up the matter during its next hearing session, which is scheduled to get underway this Thursday, January 30th, in New Orleans, Louisiana. (In re Lipitor (Atorvastatin) Litigation, MDL No. 2502 (JPML))
“Our Firm continues to hear from individuals who allege their use of Lipitor caused them to develop new-onset diabetes. The number of Lipitor lawsuits that will ultimately be filed could be substantial, and indicates that a consolidated litigation might be warranted,” says Bernstein Liebhard LLP, a nationwide law firm representing victims of defective drugs and medical devices. The Firm is currently offering free Lipitor lawsuit consultations to anyone who may have developed Type 2 diabetes due to the use of this statin medication.
Lipitor and Diabetes
According to court documents, more than 100 lawsuits have been filed in courts around the country that allege an association between the use of Lipitor and diabetes. Among other things, plaintiffs claim that Pfizer Inc. concealed this danger, and continues to provide inadequate warnings regarding Lipitor’s potential to increase the risk that patients will develop diabetes. Plaintiffs further allege that had they been aware that Lipitor use could result in the development of new-onset Type 2 diabetes, they would never have used the medication.
This Thursday’s hearing will mark the second time the JPML has heard oral arguments regarding the possible consolidation of Lipitor lawsuits. According to court documents, the Panel declined to do so last April, asserting that there were not enough claims to warrant such a proceeding. However, at that time only around a dozen Lipitor lawsuits involving diabetes allegations had been filed in federal courts throughout the U.S.
According to court records, two federal courts are already handling product liability claims involving Lipitor diabetes allegations in a coordinated manner. In October 2013, U.S. District Judge Michael J. Reagan of the Southern District of Illinois ordered that all Lipitor lawsuits pending in that jurisdiction be coordinated for pretrial proceedings. In his Order, Judge Reagan also noted that 14 similar Lipitor lawsuits were being informally coordinated in the U.S. District Court, District of South Carolina. (Hines v.Pfizer Inc., No. 13-404)
The litigation involving Lipitor and diabetes has been growing since February 2012, when the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) mandated that Pfizer add new warnings to the drug’s label regarding a potential risk of new-onset diabetes in patients who took the statin. The FDA took action after a study published in JAMA: Internal Medicine reported that post-menopausal women treated with the statin may be at an increased risk for developing the disease.*
Individuals who developed Type 2 diabetes allegedly due to their use of Lipitor may be eligible to receive compensation for medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering and more. Learn more about the alleged link between Lipitor and diabetes by visiting Bernstein Liebhard LLP’s website, or call 800-511-5092 to arrange for a free legal review.
*archinte.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=1108676, JAMA Internal Medicine, January 2012
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, including those who have been harmed by dangerous drugs, defective medical devices and consumer products. 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 11 consecutive years.
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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.lipitorlawsuitcenter.com/
https://plus.google.com/115936073311125306742?rel=author
Felecia L. Stern, Lipitor Lawsuit Diabetes Information Center, http://www.lipitorlawsuitcenter.com/, +1 800-511-5092, [email protected]
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