At a recent seminar, one of the sessions was a nuts-and-bolts discussion of conducting Internet, mostly social media, research into prospective jurors for voir dire purposes. It was quite interesting from a practical standpoint, but no law was cited that
Latest from Drug & Device Law
A Neat Diversity Removal/Fraudulent Joinder Twist
It is a truism in product liability matters that plaintiffs love state courts, whereas defense lawyers and our clients much prefer federal court. There are reasons for this. Twombly and Iqbal pleading standards are more rigorous than the pleading standards
Michigan Ct. App. Holds that PREP Act Preempts Claim against Tainted Remdesivir
Covid-19 is not over. Per doctor advice (namely, that geezers whose primary form of exercise consists of removing Meursault corks should do their best to avoid Covid) we recently received yet another Covid-19 jab. We’re not up to double digits
Fifth Circuit Holds That Competitors Can Sue Over Unapproved Drugs
No one can sell a new drug without prior approval from the FDA. That rule is codified in the federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and is not controversial (or at least should not be controversial). Less clear is whether
At Least Pennsylvania Is Not That Completely Different
Back in 2020, we encountered Gustafson v. Springfield, Inc., 2020 Pa. Super. Lexis 843 (Pa. Super. Sept. 20, 2020), a decision so bizarre that it reminded us of a Monty Python movie. That decision “employ[ed] a rationale, at once both
Federal Court’s Erie Analysis Concludes That Pharmacies Do Not Have a Duty to Fill Prescriptions in Oklahoma
Bad fact patterns sometimes make bad law. And sympathetic plaintiffs who experience unfortunate outcomes can lead to decisions that stray from established precedent. Today’s decision from the Northern District of Oklahoma addresses a sad fact pattern, but the court conducted
Will Product Liability Cases Be Getting RICO’d?
We often say here that we try not to do the other side’s homework for them or give them ideas about new ways to sue our clients. When the Supreme Court takes a well-known statute and says, essentially, that it
E.D. Texas Invalidates FDA Effort to Regulate Lab Tests as Devices
These days there are two topics that dominate legal conferences, presentations, and CLEs: artificial intelligence (AI) and Loper Bright. You will doubtless see us frequently bloviate about the former, but today’s case – American Clinical Laboratory Ass’n v. Food and Drug
Neither the Malfunction Theory Nor Res Ipsa Loquitur Excuses Failure to Offer Expert Evidence of a Manufacturing Defect
By their very nature, prescription only medical devices—particularly those that require surgical implantation—are complex products, the design and manufacture of which are not lay person knowledge. So, if you are going to claim such a device malfunctioned, you are going
California Consumers Splash Down In NJ Class Action
Plaintiffs often like to sue in New Jersey, but that does not mean they always get what they want. The California plaintiffs in Serrano v. Campbell Soup Co. sued a beverage company in New Jersey, but the court rejected their