TTLA EClips • TTLA Home • Search Litigation Bank • About November 03, 2008 -  Justices Take On Pre-Emption Issue -  Utility Settles Coal Ash Lawsuit -  Report Casts Doubt on Football Player’s Death -  Appeals Court Gives Go-Ahead for Wrongful Death Case -  Pain Patch Companies Ordered to Pay Damages -  Settlement Reached in Valero Wrongful Death Suit -  As Drug Production Shifts to China, Safety Questions Follow -  Editorial: Drugmaker Immunity is a Question for Congress     This Service Sponsored Exclusively by The James Street Group A Member Service of Texas Trial Lawyers Association   Announcements Time is running out to register for TTLA’s Annual Conference Events! Don’t miss our 4 incredible CLE programs, national speakers including Paul Begala, our Annual Party & Auction, List Server reception, Advocates Annual Meeting, Annual President’s Luncheon, Annual Board & Membership meeting, and more! Visit www.ttla.com/annual for more details and to register, or call (512) 476-3852 for more information.   Laws/Cases Justices Take On Pre-Emption Issue The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments Monday in a case that has major implications for consumers who have been harmed by prescription medications. Drugmaker Wyeth Pharmaceuticals and the Bush administration are challenging a $6.7 million verdict to a Vermont musician whose arm was amputated after medical staff improperly administered the Wyeth-produced drug Phenergan. Wyeth and the administration argue people who are harmed by drugs approved by the Food and Drug Administration should not be able to pursue damages under state laws.  Mark Sherman, The Salt Lake Tribune  11/03/2008 Read Article: The Salt Lake Tribune     Utility Settles Coal Ash Lawsuit Constellation Energy Group has agreed to pay approximately $45 million to settle a class action filed by Anne Arundel County residents whose drinking water was contaminated with coal ash. Under the settlement, Constellation will pay to connect 84 households to public water and set up trust funds for those affected by the contamination. Tests showed that billions of tons of coal ash from a Constellation plant likely caused widespread water contamination.  Hanah Cho, Baltimore Sun  11/01/2008 Read Article: Baltimore Sun     Report Casts Doubt on Football Player’s Death A report featured on an ESPN program has cast doubt on the circumstances surrounding the death of a University of Central Florida football player who collapsed earlier this year during offseason workouts. According the report, athletic department officials significantly understated the intensity of the workout and failed to observe precautions recommended by a national trainers group. Additionally, players said they were hesitant to speak out about the incident for fear of losing their scholarships. The family of the player, Ereck Plancher, has said they intend to pursue a wrongful death lawsuit against the university.  Iliana Limon, Orlando Sentinel  11/03/2008 Read Article: Orlando Sentinel     Appeals Court Gives Go-Ahead for Wrongful Death Case The husband of a woman who died six months after her vehicle fell into an open trench at a construction site may pursue a wrongful death against HK Contractors, the Utah Court of Appeals has found. In the lawsuit, Doug Scott claims that directions at the site were confusing. A district judge had previously dismissed the case for lack of evidence.  Pamela Manson, The Salt Lake Tribune  11/03/2008 Read Article: The Salt Lake Tribune     Pain Patch Companies Ordered to Pay Damages A Florida jury has ordered two Johnson & Johnson subsidiaries to pay more than $13 million to the family of a woman who died of a drug overdose caused by a painkilling patch. After deliberating for more than five hours, jurors found that Janssen Pharmaceutical Products and Alza were to blame for manufacturing defects that caused Susan Hodgemire’s death. In 2007, the Food and Drug Administration ordered additional safety warnings for the Duragesic patches and their generic equivalents following a two-year investigation of the products.  Jef Feeley, Bloomberg  10/29/2008 Read Article: Bloomberg     Settlement Reached in Valero Wrongful Death Suit Valero Energy has agreed to an undisclosed settlement with the family of one of two employees who died while working at the company’s Delaware City refinery on Nov. 5, 2005. The two men suffocated while working atop a refining tower filled with nitrogen gas. A lawsuit filed by the family of the second deceased worker is still pending.  Jeff Montgomery, News Journal Online  10/29/2008 Read Article: News Journal Online     Products As Drug Production Shifts to China, Safety Questions Follow As more drug companies shift their production facilities from the United States and Western European countries to China, consumers are left with serious safety questions. Regulators from the U.S. and Europe rarely inspect Chinese facilities, leaving potential for counterfeiting and contamination. Critics say that the strained oversight of Chinese-made drugs is merely one symptom of a broken regulatory system.  Gardiner Harris, The New York Times  10/31/2008 Read Article: The New York Times     Editorials/Columns/Letters Editorial: Drugmaker Immunity is a Question for Congress Wyeth and other drug manufacturers should not use the courts to seek immunity from lawsuits arising from inadequate drug labeling, according to an editorial published in the Washington Post. The newspaper argues that such protections ought to be explicitly written into law by Congress. However, despite numerous revisions to food and drug laws in recent decades, lawmakers have declined to grant drugmakers immunity from lawsuits. Such reticence by lawmakers, the newspaper says, should speak volumes to justices preparing to hear Wyeth’s arguments for immunity.  Editorial Staff, The Washington Post  11/03/2008 Read Article: The Washington Post     Published by TRIALSMITH, Litigation Tools for Trial Lawyers