Judge Wilken Gives Preliminary Approval to Partial Settlements

Last Friday, Judge Wilken gave preliminary approval to two separate settlement agreements related to the O’Bannon and Keller cases. The agreement related to the O’Bannon case was for $40 Million and involved EA Sports. The agreement related to the Keller case was for $20 Million and involved the NCAA.

The NCAA slyly tried to argue in front of Judge Wilken that their agreement in the Keller case should result in a majority of the claims in the O’Bannon case being tossed because the agreement in Keller released them in the O’Bannon case. Judge Wilken disagreed.

It is expected that a decision in the O’Bannon case, a bench trial in front of Judge Wilken that lasted three weeks in June, will be coming in the next few weeks.

For more information, click in the links below:

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-07-24/ncaa-judge-gives-early-nod-to-60-million-ncaa-ea-settlements.html

http://www.al.com/sports/index.ssf/2014/07/judge_to_approve_ncaa_video_ga.html

Risperdal Lawsuits on the Rise

Risperidone, sold under the brand name Risperdal, has recently come under major legal scrutiny and been the subject of Risperdal lawsuits over the issue of male breast growth. The drug, manufactured by Janssen Pharmaceuticals, a Johnson & Johnson subsidiary, is a prescription drug classified as an anti-psychotic. It was designed to treat schizophrenia without the sedating effects on the patient that so many older anti psychotic drugs caused.

Like other drugs designed to treat maladies of the brain, the drug was found to be helpful against several other disorders, and it was subsequently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat bipolar disorder, as well as aggression and irritability associated with autism.

However, Risperdal has been found to cause a number of serious side effects. This allegedly includes a condition called gynecomastia, or male breast growth. The condition is obviously an emotionally scarring disability, and can be very stigmatizing. Additionally, Risperdal is associated with weight gain and diabetes, which may initially camouflage gynecomastia.

Lawsuits over Risperdal side effects have been consolidated into a multidistrict litigation (MDL) in Pennsylvania state court. It is yet to be determined if there will be a Federal court MDL created. For more information on MDL’s, please see my previous blog posts. Over 360 lawsuits have been filed on behalf of plaintiffs who have been injured by Risperdal.

The Risperdal Gynecomastia MDL is In re: Risperdal Litigation, Case No. 100300296, in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas.

Pittman, Dutton & Hellums, P.C., is currently investigating Risperdal injury claims. If you or a loved one were injured as a result of taking Risperdal, please contact Booth Samuels at 1-866-515-8880 or by email at booths@pittmandutton.com.

J&J Staple Accessory Kit Recall

Johnson and Johnson has recalled more than 157,000 surgical stapler devices and accessories used in hemorrhoids treatment procedures due to potential malfunctions that pose a serious safety risk. The recall is a Class 1 recall, the most serious classification of recalls. Class 1 recalls are only issued when a defective medical device is likely to cause serious health problems or death. 

These products are commonly referred to as “Staple Accessory Kits” or “Internal Hemorrhoid Staples”. They are manufactured by J&J's Ethicon Endo-Surgery division. 

The recalled products are:

Transtar Circular Stapler Procedure Set

Proximate HCS Hemorrhoidal Circular Stapler and Accessories

Proximate PPH Hemorrhoidal Circular Stapler and Accessories

The FDA issued a recall based on issues related to the firing of the device which may result in incomplete staple formation. An incomplete staple formation is similar to when you attempt to staple too many pieces of paper together and the staple does not puncture through all of the pieces and does not fasten correctly.

Failure of an incomplete staple formation can result in severe pain, sphincter dysfunction, rectal wall damage, sepsis, bleeding, occlusion of the rectal canal, and splitting of rectal wall staple line and bleeding.

The affected products were manufactured and distributed between April 2011 and July 2012.

J&J said its Proximate HCS hemorrhoidal circular stapler and accessories with product code "PPH01" have been discontinued in the U.S. However, the Proximate PPH stapler remains available.

Pittman, Dutton & Hellums, P.C. is currently investigating “Staple Accessory Kit” injury claims. If you or a loved one were injured as a result of this product, please contact Booth Samuels at    1-866-515-8880 or by email at booths@pittmandutton.com.

Pilot Flying J to Pay Government $92M

Today, it was reported that Jimmy Haslam's company, Pilot Flying J, will pay approximately $92 million in fines to the government. Haslam is also the owner of the NFL's Browns and brother to the governor of Tennessee. Under the terms of the deal, it is unlikely that the US Attorney's Office will prosecute Mr. Haslam for the allegations that his company engaged in an elaborate rebate scam in which thousands of trucking companies were defrauded.

The scam is alleged to have occurred from 2007 up until the corporate offices were raided by the F.B.I. in April 2013. A large class action was filed against Pilot Flying J, but most of the claimants have settled their claims. There are still claims pending against the corporation in various courts. See my previous blog posts for more background on this story.

For more on the deal Mr. Haslam got with the government, click the link below:

http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/11214330/jimmy-haslam-company-pilot-flying-j-pay-92m-fine

NFL Concussion Settlement Approved

This week, U.S. District Judge Brody, issued a ruling and granted preliminary approval of a settlement in the high-profile former NFL players lawsuit over concussions. An agreement had been reached nearly seven months ago, but Judge Brody would not approve it based on concerns that the agreement may not be sufficiently funded. That settlement was estimated to total $765 Million. This agreement is non-capped, as the previous agreement was capped. 

A fairness hearing on the terms of the agreement will be heard by Judge Brody on November 19th. Seven former players have already filed objections to the settlement agreement. 

MDL Judge Denies Blue Cross Blue Shield Motion To Dismiss

In what may be a landmark case for the health insurance industry, Judge Proctor of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, issued an Order denying Blue Cross/Blue Shield's Motion to Dismiss in early June. The cases, which have been consolidated into an MDL under Judge Proctor, were brought by providers and subscribers claiming Sherman Act anti-trust violations by Blue Cross/Blue Shield. 

Although this case is a long way from any final decision from Judge Proctor (not to mention anticipated appeals by either or both sides), his ruling stymied the Defendants' attempts to have the case thrown out before any real litigation took place. Now that the ruling has come out, discovery can proceed, which will surely by expansive and contested. 

To read Judge Proctor's Memorandum Order, click HERE.

For an article posted on AL.com which covers the story, click on the link below: 

http://www.al.com/news/index.ssf/2014/07/blue_cross_lawsuit_could_have.html#incart_river

For a more in depth discussion of the legal defenses and the Order, click on the link below:

http://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=711a75a2-b8c5-401a-a64c-b339523de9a1

Pradaxa Settlement Opt In Deadline July 9th

The deadline to participate in the Pradaxa MDL settlement is July 9th. All claimants who registered previously must decide whether they will "opt in" or "opt out" of the global settlement. The settlement is available for claimants who registered with the Court and is open to both those that have filed lawsuits and those that have not.