The Legend of Richard Scruggs: More Myth Than Fact? |
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Posted by: leflaw on 03/08/2008 12:06 AM
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The legend of Richard Scruggs is by now well-known. His fame took root in the 1990s, when he won settlements for shipyard workers in Pascagoula, Miss., who had been exposed to asbestos. It blossomed in 1998, when the former Navy fighter pilot pressured tobacco companies to agree to a $248 billion settlement. And, in recent months, his story descended into the realm of scandal when the 61-year-old Scruggs, his son David "Zach" Scruggs and three others were indicted in his hometown of Oxford, Miss., for trying to bribe a judge to get a favorable ruling in a fee dispute. But the legend of Dickie Scruggs, as commonly told, generally omits a key fact. Scruggs' reputation as a giant killer of the plaintiffs bar is outdated. Even before the indictment his career was in decline [see "High-Wire Act"] |
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Supreme Court Guts state product liability law |
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Posted by: leflaw on 02/20/2008 09:38 PM
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| The U.S. Supreme Court handed a victory to Medtronic Inc (MDT.N: Quote, Profile, Research) on Wednesday, ruling that patients cannot sue medical-device manufacturers in state court over harm from a device that has approval from federal regulators. |
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Leflaw files Supreme Court petition for certiorari on copyright statutory damages and Fair use involvoing the karoake industry |
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Posted by: leflaw on 02/21/2008 12:26 PM
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Leflaw files Supreme Court petition for certiorari on copyright statutory damages and Fair use involving the karoake industry. Should publishers be allowed to prevent Karoake renditions of songs?
http://www.ilrweb.com/viewILRPDF.asp?filename=panorama_zomba_080219PetitionCertiorari |
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VIOXX SETTLEMENT MAY COST 5 BILLION |
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Posted by: leflaw on 11/09/2007 08:00 AM
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Merck & Co., after setting aside nothing to resolve liability over its Vioxx painkiller, may pay about $5 billion to settle claims that it hid the health risks of its withdrawn drug, three lawyers with direct knowledge of the accord said.
Merck, the third-largest U.S. drug maker, pulled Vioxx off the market in 2004 after a study showed it raised the risk of heart attacks in some patients. The company is facing more than 26,500 lawsuits filed by former users who claim the drug caused strokes and heart attacks. |
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Merck Approves Vioxx Settlement |
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Posted by: leflaw on 11/09/2007 07:58 AM
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Reports: Merck Approves Vioxx Settlement
27 minutes ago
NEW YORK (AP) — The maker of the painkiller Vioxx has agreed to pay $4.85 billion to settle thousands of lawsuits in one of the largest civil cases ever, according to published reports Friday.
Merck & Co. Inc. faced about 26,600 lawsuits representing 47,000 plaintiffs, and about 265 potential class action cases filed by people or family members who claimed the drug proved fatal or injured its users.
The agreement could still collapse, though lawyers with knowledge of the deal said that was unlikely, the New York Times reported. The deal becomes binding only if 85 percent of all plaintiffs agree to drop their cases.
The drugmaker could put the uncertainty of millions of dollars in possible settlements that have plagued pharmaceutical company behind it, though it has been successful fighting cases individually.
Analysts predicted early on that liability could reach $50 billion, but after losing its first case in a $253 million verdict, Merck has won a string of civil cases in numerous states.
The company said last month it had added $70 million to its reserves for defending lawsuits over the blockbuster painkiller that it pulled from the market three years ago. As of Sept. 30, Merck had reserved a total of $1.92 billion for legal expenses and spent a total of $1.2 billion.
Payments would vary, depending on injuries and the length of time that Vioxx was used.
"Weve been asked by the judge to talk to the plaintiffs and we are talking to them," Kent Jarrell, a spokesman for Merck, told the New York Times. "Right now, there is no finalized agreement."
Two attorneys told the paper, however, confirmed it independently, the Times reported.
Merck still faces a number of government investigations, both state and federal.
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