Inflammatory Bowel Disease Trials Against Accutane Result In Large Verdict

The number of Accutane lawsuits filed in New Jersey state court by individuals who experienced severe intestinal problems, such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease, continue to pour in. In April, a New Jersey jury awarded $2 million in damages to a woman who developed ulcerative colitis from Accutane. However, the same jury declined to award damages to two other plaintiffs involved in the same trial. A New Jersey jury has hit the pharmaceutical company that makes Accutane with a $25.16 million judgment in a lawsuit filed by an Alabama man who blamed the drug for his inflammatory bowel disorder. Thirty-eight-year-old Andrew McCarrell of Moody, Ala., took the acne drug in his 20s. He says Hoffmann-La Roche Inc. failed to adequately warn of serious Accutane side effects. McCarrell eventually had his colon removed.

All of the suits against Accutane’s manufacturer, Hoffmann-La Roche, involve allegations that side effects of Accutane, a popular acne medication developed by Roche, caused users to develop severe gastrointestinal problems. Plaintiffs allege that Roche and generic drug makers failed to adequately research the medication or warn about the risk of inflammatory bowel disease, which could include ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. Although the manufacturer of Accutane and generic drug makers who have marketed generic Accutane since 2002 have been aware of the risk of Accutane bowel side effects for years, they have failed to take adequate steps to warn consumers and the medical community about the extent of the risk. Information provided about the risk of Accutane bowel problems has been vague and confusing, leaving many prescribing doctors and their patients unclear about the extent of the risk and impact of the damage it can cause.

According to a filing in late July, there are now at least 5,169 lawsuits over Accutane that have been filed in New Jersey state court, representing a sharp increase from the 3,223 suits reported as of early May 2011. The McCarrell verdict was originally overturned and Hoffmann-La Roche entered into a retrial that resulted in that much larger judgement against the manufacturer of Accutane.

 

Accutane Lawyers Prepare For Thousands of Trials

5,169 lawsuits against drugmaker Roche in regards to the once-popular acne drug Accutane are currently pending in the New Jersey State Court. A few cases have already gone to trial, but it could be years before others are decided. Some plaintiffs may be settled with out-of-court for undisclosed amounts. This might be necessary in order for drugmaker Roche to deal with the sheer number of Accutane lawsuits that have already been filed – and that are likely to keep coming in. The first few Accutane suits were filed in January of 2003, and since then the number has continued to increase exponentially.

Since the beginning of 2011 alone the number of Accutane cases has more than doubled, with around 2,500 in January 2011 increasing the 5,169 that were reported as of June of this year. It looks like the number will keep increasing, if the pattern continues – the first six months of 2011 showed a 25 percent increase in the number of cases filed as compared to the number filed in the entire year of 2010. The increased media coverage of the trials may be a contributing factor to the number of lawsuits being filed at this time.

Accutane side effect lawsuits are likely to revolve around a small group of very serious side effects, namely inflammatory bowel disease, ulcerative colitis, and Crohn’s disease. Each of these conditions is a gastrointestinal disorder that can be permanent and have an impact on a patient’s health and quality of life for the rest of their lives.

Some Accutane cases have already been decided, with a few resulting in a substantial settlement being awarded to the plaintiff and some others ending with the jury siding with the defendant, Roche. Most lawsuits that have been filed allege that Roche failed to appropriately warn patients of the serious side effects that have been linked to Accutane, as was the case with the lawsuit of Kamie Kendall. Ms Kendall, from Utah, won $10.6 million in damages from Roche during her 2008 case, but in 2010 it was determined that evidence was barred unfairly, and the verdict was thrown out. Her retrial is forthcoming.

It is not yet clear whether or not lawsuits regarding generic forms of Accutane will be included in Accutane mass tort litigation.