Experienced Dangerous Drugs Attorneys In Miami To Fight For Your Rights
Panter, Panter & Sampedro
Different kinds of drugs will affect your body in different kinds of ways. The effects associated with drugs can vary from person to person depending on a variety of factors such as body size, general health, the dosage of the drug and whether any other drugs are present in one’s system at the same time.
Far too often certain medications prove to be harmful and even deadly. This can occur as a result of improper manufacturing, handling or labeling. Manufacturers and sellers of drugs that have a negative impact on your health and wellness may be held responsible, even if there is a medication recall or the danger was unknown.
At Panter, Panter & Sampedro, our attorneys have over three decades of experience fighting to recover just compensation for the losses suffered by victims of dangerous drugs and devices. Don’t wait, call us today at 305-662-6178 for a FREE CONSULTATION.
How Medication Can Cause Harm
The US Food & Drug administration, or FDA, has rules and regulatory procedures for the pharmaceutical industry. Although, sometimes dangerous drugs still enter the marketplace. A drug can be dangerous because of a mistake in the manufacturing process, a flaw in its design, or that patients were not warned about the drug’s side effects.
Too often, physicians either do not follow up to ensure prescriptions are being tolerated well, or continue to refill old prescriptions without considering whether those drugs are still, or were ever necessary.
Dangerous Drug Lawsuit Examples
History shows that dangerous drugs cause the most harm in the first year of their release. This means that many medications are released without a full understanding of their risks, with early adopters often suffering as a result. Some drugs are still marketed by large corporations even after evidence has been noted of serious side effects or death.
Pharmaceutical companies have caused widespread injury which has brought about thousands of lawsuits in the form of mass tort litigation. Some of these drugs include:
- Talcum powder
- Taxotere
- Nexium
- Prilosec
- Prevacid
- Xarelto
- Pradaxa
Dietary supplements have become increasingly popular and are of additional concern. The FDA requires manufacturers to assure the safety of such supplements before selling them, but as of now, no formal testing or approval requirements exist.
Filling a Dangerous Drug Lawsuit
Dangerous or defective drug cases are often more complex due to its highly technical nature. Specialists and medical professionals need to prove your claim that the drug scientifically affected your body and caused you harm. The problem is that massive drug corporations have more than enough resources to try and prove that their drug either did not cause your injuries, or that you had enough warning to put yourself at risk. Regardless of which avenue the company takes, an experienced and skilled pharmaceutical lawyer is paramount to fighting an injustice.
There are a few legal theories that come into play when filling a dangerous drug lawsuit:
- Strict Liability. Under this theory, the drug manufacturer is always liable for any adverse side effects when patients are taking the drug as prescribed.
- Negligence. If a drug company was grossly careless in product testing or production of the drug, then it failed its legal obligation to the duty of care that is owed toward the patient. Drug companies can be held liable for negligence if that failure caused harm or death.
- Failure to give warning. If a drug company fails its legal responsibility to warn patients of potential side effects and danger associated in taking the drug as directed, the patient is unable to assume their risk. In this case, the company is liable.
Typically, most of these cases end up in federal court because the drug maker defendant is out-of-state. When there are a large number of cases, all of the claims will be consolidated under one federal judge. This is what is known as multidistrict litigation, or MDL. At this point, attorneys will prepare common core discovery with depositions, interrogations, and document formation on issues that relate to a majority of the patients who have brought suit.
Sometimes after discovery there will be a bellwether trial. This is when the federal judge supervising the case will hold a trial to give parties a glimpse at the value of their lawsuit. If these result in verdicts for the plaintiffs, it may set the stage for potential settlement discussions.
The Help You Need After Injuries Caused By Medications
If you believe you or someone you love has been harmed or died as a result of a prescribed medication, the dangerous medication attorneys at Panter, Panter & Sampedro may be able to help you recover what you deserve. We are knowledgeable on this highly technical area of law and can discuss the specific details of your situation.
In many cases, a lawsuit must be filed before a certain expiration date known as the statute of limitations. Contact Panter, Panter & Sampedro today to ensure you are not giving up your right to possible compensation.
*On March 24, 2023, Governor Ron DeSantis signed House Bill (HB) 837 reducing Florida’s statute of limitations for general negligence cases from four years to two years. In other words, a lawsuit alleging negligence which accrued after March 24, 2023 must now be filed within two years of the date of the alleged negligence or the claim will be forever barred.
Call our Miami office today at 305-662-6178 for a FREE CONSULTATION.
