Verdicts and Settlements Against Pharmaceutical Companies

Simmons Hanly Conroy helps everyday people who were hurt when companies choose profits over people’s safety. Many of these people were trying to live healthier lives or manage a chronic condition. They did their due diligence to make informed consumer choices. Yet, they were deceived by the companies responsible for protecting them.

When they turned to our legal team, they weren’t expecting anything. They just wanted someone to listen. Our team not only listened, they showed people like Tom who got cancer from Actos or Tanya who was seriously hurt by Yaz, how to stand up for their rights.

It is our mission to do what we can to help consumers hold big corporations, like drug companies, accountable for selling dangerous drugs and medical devices without properly warning consumers of serious side effects.

Helping Everyday Consumers Stand Up and Speak Out

What do you do when the medical device or prescription drug your doctor said would make you better, instead makes things worse? Simmons Hanly Conroy has helped thousands of consumers just like you answer this question.

The lawyers and staff at Simmons Hanly Conroy regularly help consumers stand up to the largest drug companies in the world. Keep reading to learn how everyday people decided enough was enough, took a stand, and won.

Results in Dangerous Drugs & Defective Devices

Consumers, with the lawyers at Simmons Hanly Conroy by their sides, have held corporations accountable for more than $10.6 billion in verdicts and settlements.

Federal Multidistrict Litigation Settlements in Pharmaceutical Mass Torts

Our pharmaceutical attorneys, led by Partners Paul Hanly and Jayne Conroy, have held court-appointed leadership roles in pharmaceutical cases of national scope. These cases are called multidistrict litigations. It’s not uncommon for these cases, if they settle, to settle for millions or even billions of dollars. Any results are then divided among the injured consumers.

Multidistrict litigation (MDL) happens when hundreds or thousands of similar cases filed in state courts around the country are consolidated into a centralized federal court before one judge who oversees the case. This judge then appoints a leadership team of attorneys from various experienced law firms to litigate the MDL. To be appointed, attorneys must have a track record of experience in the litigation area and have the resources necessary to litigate the cases.

A sampling of our ongoing results in multidistrict litigation cases are below.

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Individual Results in Pharmaceutical Litigation

Simmons Hanly Conroy pharmaceutical attorneys also represent individual cases and have secured significant results.

OxyContin Mass Tort

$75 million | Resolved 2006

Partners Paul Hanly and Jayne Conroy spearheaded the firm’s representation of 5,000 individuals in litigation against Purdue Pharma and Abbott Laboratories, alleging our clients’ addictions to the opiate OxyContin was a result of the manufacturers’ fraudulent marketing campaign that claimed the drug was not as addictive as other alternative drugs. At the time, the firm was the only major plaintiffs’ firm in the country to prosecute such claims. Following a 3-year battle that included individually filing 1,200 cases in various courts across the nation, Purdue Pharma settled all 5,000+ of our clients’ claims. Because our legal advocates proved the full extent of Purdue’s criminality during the lawsuit’s discovery phase, the U.S. Department of Justice used our team’s work to prosecute Purdue and levy fines of more than $600 million.

Additional results for individuals and their families harmed by dangerous drugs include the following:

  • $3 Million Verdict Awarded in Birth Defect Case
  • $1.4 Million Awarded in Ephedra Case
  • $1.3 Million Awarded in Case Against Major Drug Manufacturer
  • $1.2 Million Awarded in Wrongful Death Case
  • $1.8 Million Awarded in Wrongful Death Case

Actos MDL

$2.3 billion global settlement | Resolved Spring 2015

Partners Jayne Conroy served as a court-appointed member of the Plaintiff’s Steering Committee for the Actos MDL. The litigation included more than 3,500 users of the popular diabetes drug Actos who alleged the drug caused bladder cancer and other serious health problems.

Actos Product Liability MDL: In Re Actos (Pioglitazone) Products Liability Litigation; 11-md-02299; U.S. District Court, Western District of Louisiana (Lafayette)

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Chantix MDL

$299 million global settlement | Resolved July 2013

Partners Jayne Conroy, David Miceli and Clinton Fisher served on the Plaintiff’s Steering Committee for the Chantix MDL in which more than 2,500 users of the smoking cessation drug alleged the drug increased the risk of suicide, suicidal thoughts and behaviors.

In re: Chantix (Varenicline) Products Liability Litigation 2:09-cv-02039; MDL No. 2092

Yaz and Yasmin MDL

$1.69 billion global settlement | Resolved Fall 2012

Partners Jayne Conroy and Trent Miracle held leadership positions on the federal YAZ MDL. The litigation included thousands of users of the popular birth control who alleged Bayer, the drug’s manufacturer, aggressively engaged in misleading marketing and failed to warn of the increased risk of causing serious, fatal complications. In addition to litigating the case for hundreds of clients, firm attorneys also helped negotiate the final global settlement of $1.69 billion dollars for all women harmed by the drug.

In re: Yasmin and YAZ (Drospirenone) Marketing, Sales Practices and Products Liability Litigation MDL No. 2100

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Editorial Team

The Simmons Hanly Conroy Editorial Team consists of journalists, writers and editors who strive to deliver accurate and useful information to families needing legal help. Our team works alongside the firm's attorneys and partners, as well as with medical professionals and other specialists, to keep all information relevant and helpful.