Summary Judgment Ruling In New Jersey HRT Litigation
On July 11, 2008, the mass tort judge handling hormone replacement cases in New Jersey granted summary judgment dismissing Bailey v. Wyeth, No. L-999-06 MT (N.J. Super.), ruling that the labels used by defendants Wyeth and Upjohn were adequate as a matter of law. The failure to warn claims were dismissed because the plaintiffs could not overcome the presumption of adequacy of FDA-approved labels created by the New Jersey Products Liability Act (NJ PLA). The claims for fraud, negligent misrepresentation, and consumer fraud likewise failed because they are subsumed by the NJ PLA and could not be asserted as independent causes of action.
Because our firm is involved in HRT litigation, and because of past and current client relationships, MassTortDefense policy is to not offer extensive commentary on such decisions. Here, however, for interested readers is the actual opinion.
