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Building a Dangerous Drug Claim

Personal Injury AttorneyPerhaps the most important number in a dangerous drug claim is 2.56 billion. According to one study, that’s the amount of money drug companies spend developing a new drug, obtaining Food and Drug Administration approval and marketing it for sale.

Seven is another important number. In most cases, companies only have the exclusive right to sell new drugs for seven (7) years. After that, inexpensive, generic equivalents often flood the market. Therefore, when a new drug hits store shelves, companies must quickly sell lots of product to make a profit. So, these companies often suppress negative information about side-effects and other dangers, so sales will not be affected.

In this environment, someone needs to stand up for injured consumers. Our Rockford personal injury attorneys gladly fill that role.

Establishing Liability

Today’s drugs are more powerful than ever, which means their side-effects are more powerful than ever as well. Many times, the side-effects overwhelm the intended effects. Viagra is a good example. One of the most common erectile dysfunction drugs in the world was originally a cardiovascular drug.

That story has a successful ending, but most others do not. Here are just a few recent examples of some dangerous drugs which have hit the market:

  • Pradaxa: This anticoagulant sometimes causes uncontrollable bleeding. And, unlike a predecessor drug, Pradaxa, has no antidote. In May 2019, a Connecticut jury ordered the drug maker to pay more than $540 million in damages.
  • Xarelto: This blood thinner has a similar story to Pradaxa. In 2019, Johnson & Johnson and Bayer agreed to set up a $775 million settlement fund to deal with hundreds of lawsuits.
  • Taxotere: Chemotherapy drugs such as this one kills fast-dividing cells, such as cancer cells and hair cells. In most cases, patients regrow hair after they stop taking chemotherapy drugs. But Taxotere has been linked to permanent alopecia (hair loss).

In all these instances, the drug companies insisted their products were safe, so people would continue buying them.

Legally, these claims are a bit easier to establish in Illinois than some other states. The Prairie State has a more relaxed expert witness evaluation standard. Therefore, more doctors are free to share their opinions and conclusions with jurors, provided these doctors meet minimum qualifications.

Overcoming Legal Hurdles

The statute of limitations is a significant barrier in many dangerous drug cases. Typically, victims have only two (2) years to bring tort cases. Frequently, dangerous drug side-effects do not kick in for several years or even several decades.

In these cases, the discovery rule protects victims. The statute of limitations clock does not begin ticking until victims discover the full extent of their injuries and they connect those injuries to the defendant’s misconduct.

Drug warning labels are a good illustration. Once patients stop taking drugs, they never read updated warning labels and do not know there may be an issue, until they get sick.

Contributory negligence on the part of the physician is sometimes an issue as well. Many times, drug companies try to shift blame for side-effects onto the doctors who prescribed or administered the drug.

However, manufacturers are strictly liable for any injuries their dangerous products cause. So, this defense usually does not hold up in court.

Damages in dangerous drug claims usually include compensation for economic losses, such as medical bills, and noneconomic losses, such as pain and suffering. Moreover, jurors often award substantial punitive damages in these cases.

Count on Experienced Attorneys

Dangerous drug victims may be entitled to substantial compensation. For a free consultation with an experienced personal injury lawyer in Rockford, contact Fisk & Monteleone, Ltd. We routinely handle matters in Winnebago County and nearby jurisdictions.