The hormone replacement therapy litigation is turning into one of the longest-running mass torts in U.S. history.  Zoe Littlepage, a partner at Littlepage Booth in Houston, and lead Plaintiffs’ counsel in the federal multi-district litigation, believes “this is now the longest-running MDL with no inventory settlements and no mass settlements in sight.” This means the Defendants are taking a case-by-case approach in this litigation.

The current wave of litigation began after a study in July 2002, known as the Women’s Health Initiative, found that using Prempro for five years increased the risk of breast cancer by 26%, heart attacks by 29%, strokes by 41% and blood clots by 113%. There are about 1,500 HRT suits in Philadelphia and 12,000 nationwide, including about 8,000 consolidated in federal multi-district litigation in U.S. District Court in Little Rock, Arkansas.

The suits name Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, which sold Premarin and Prempro, and Upjohn, a division of Pfizer, which sold Provera. Pfizer acquired Wyeth in 2009. The next jury trial, involving claims by three Arkansas women, is scheduled for October 1^st.  It will be heard in U.S. District Court in Little Rock, Arkansas. Two other trials are slated to take place before the end of the year. In November, Zoe Littlepage will represent Georgia Torkie-Tork in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Virginia. A resident of Virginia, Torkie-Tork developed breast cancer in 2002 after taking Prempro for six years. And in December, Ted Meadows, a lawyer in our firm’s Mass Torts Section, will be the lead Plaintiffs’ counsel for claims by four women in a consolidated trial to be held in state court in Philadelphia. We look forward to trying those claims for our clients.

Source: Lawyers USA Online