Product Liability Law

Judge slashes $211M from punitive award in Roundup cancer case

A San Francisco judge has slashed a punitive damages verdict by about $211 million in a lawsuit claiming the weed killer Roundup caused a groundskeeper’s cancer. Judge Suzanne Ramos Bolanos reduced punitive damages on Monday from $250 million to $39.25 million, the same amount jurors awarded in compensatory damages, report…

Oct 23, 2018 12:53 PM CDT

Judge criticizes lawyer’s champagne argument as she considers trimming $289M verdict

A San Francisco judge on Wednesday criticized a lawyer’s closing argument as she considered cutting a $289 million jury award to a groundskeeper who blamed Monsanto’s Roundup weed killer for his cancer. During the hearing, Judge Suzanne Ramos Bolanos questioned whether lead trial lawyer Brent Wisner had crossed a line…

Oct 12, 2018 7:15 AM CDT

New trial motion says lawyer’s insults and ‘incurable character assassinations’ prejudiced the jury

A new trial motion filed on behalf of Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. argues that a lawyer who sued the company prejudiced jurors through a “steady stream of insults” and “incurable character assassinations.” Goodyear lawyer James Lynch, of Lynch Daskal Emery, filed the motion in New York state court on…

Aug 16, 2018 6:05 AM CDT

Remainder of product liability group from Quinn Emanuel follows Sheila Birnbaum to Dechert

Dechert has added the remainder of the products liability group from Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan after acquiring its two co-chairs and another partner in May. The entire group consists of 29 people. The move is one of Dechert’s largest lateral acquisitions to date, according to a press release from…

Jul 20, 2018 10:29 AM CDT

Johnson & Johnson ordered to pay nearly $4.7B in talcum powder case

Jurors in St. Louis awarded nearly $4.7 billion in damages on Thursday in a suit that claimed Johnson & Johnson baby powder caused 22 women to get ovarian cancer, including six women who died. Jurors awarded $550 million in compensatory damages and $4.14 billion in punitive damages, report the St.…

Jul 13, 2018 9:50 AM CDT

Hedge funds clamor to finance mass tort cases; some call for disclosure

Hedge funds and private equity firms are jumping into another aspect of litigation finance with loans that finance mass tort cases against drug companies and medical device manufacturers.

Jun 27, 2018 7:00 AM CDT

Federal judge scolds slow-moving BigLaw lawyers, enforces oral agreement to settle class action

A federal judge in New Jersey is requiring Samsung Electronics America to abide by an oral agreement to settle two would-be class actions involving drain pumps in washing machines.

May 23, 2018 7:00 AM CDT

‘Westworld’ story lines connect with real-world legal issues

A fictional theme park with a wild west theme is the setting for the HBO series Westworld, where guests pay to live out their fantasies. Those familiar with the darker side of the human condition won’t be surprised to learn that these fantasies often entail patrons killing as many of the amusement park hosts as they please.

May 21, 2018 7:10 AM CDT

5th Circuit blasts lawyer who sent thank-you checks to experts, yet told jurors they were unpaid

A federal appeals court has overturned a $151 million award against a hip implant manufacturer because of “serious evidentiary errors” by the judge and “deceptions” by Mark Lanier, a high-profile Houston lawyer for the plaintiffs.

Apr 30, 2018 7:00 AM CDT

Medical device plaintiff sues her law firm, saying it coaxed her into unnecessary surgery

An Arkansas woman who contends she was scared into surgery to remove vaginal mesh to bolster her position in litigation has filed a lawsuit against her former law firm and the litigation funding company that financed the operation. Allegations in the suit by Jerri Plummer highlight how plaintiffs in suits…

Apr 16, 2018 11:25 AM CDT

Jury awards $117M in case alleging talcum powder caused mesothelioma

Jurors in New Jersey have awarded $117 million in a lawsuit that claimed Johnson & Johnson’s talcum powder products caused an investment banker’s mesothelioma. Jurors apportioned 70 percent of the blame to Johnson & Johnson and 30 percent to its talcum supplier, Imerys Talc America, report the New Jersey Law…

Apr 12, 2018 3:43 PM CDT

The dangers of digital things: Self-driving cars steer proposed laws on robotics and automation

Increased reliance on robotics, artificial intelligence and automation tests whether laws and regulations designed to protect those humans are sufficient or whether new laws are necessary.

Mar 1, 2018 12:01 AM CST

Judge punishes lawyer for using hashtag #killinnazis, tosses $27.8M Xarelto verdict on other grounds

A Pennsylvania judge on Tuesday overturned a $27.8 million verdict against the makers of the blood thinner Xarelto in a lawsuit by an Indiana woman who claimed the drug caused severe gastrointestinal bleeding.

Jan 11, 2018 7:00 AM CST

Milberg joins forces with mass tort firm Sanders Philips Grossman

Class action and complex litigation firm Milberg and mass tort firm Sanders Phillips Grossman plan to partner up, becoming Milberg Tadler Phillips Grossman, the American Lawyer and Global Legal Post reported Monday. The new law firm will be headquartered in New York City and represent plaintiffs across the United States…

Jan 8, 2018 5:40 PM CST

Drugmaker claims #killinnazis Instagram posts are part of lawyers’ ‘xenophobic’ strategy

Lawyers seeking to overturn a $27.8 million verdict against the makers of the blood thinner Xarelto contend that nine Instagram posts using the hashtag #killinnazis are part of a strategy by their opponents to link the defendants to Nazi Germany. In motions filed last week, lawyers for German-based Bayer and…

Dec 20, 2017 11:50 AM CST