Conn. Bellwether Trial Verdict: Plaintiff Awarded $542K

Conn. Bellwether Trial Verdict: Plaintiff Awarded $542K

Introduction

On Friday, May 17, a Connecticut jury awarded $542K over the alleged bleeding risk caused by blood thinner Pradaxa.

According to the trial, the lawsuit was filed in May 2016 alleging that the plaintiff had a 40-year history of gastroesophageal reflux disease, a condition that increases the chance of internal bleeding from Pradaxa but was still prescribed the drug without knowing the danger. The jury granted $42,464 in economic damages and $500,000 in noneconomic damages. The punitive damages against the pharmaceutical company will be decided by Connecticut Superior Court Judge Carl Schuman and could be up to $1.095 million.

There are more than 3,100 Pradaxa cases pending across the nation, including roughly 3,000 in the consolidated proceeding in Connecticut. The U.S. FDA approved drug has been reported to cause serious injuries and gastrointestinal bleeding, heart attack, stroke, brain hemorrhage, kidney bleeding, and death. In December 2017, Judge Herndon, who overlooked Pradaxa class action lawsuits, recommended a shutdown of the multidistrict litigation (MDL No. 2385) after dismissing the pending cases in the docket.