Product Liability

Product Liability

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Your products are the lifeblood of your business. To maintain your company’s health you must manage risk effectively and quickly and resolve complex cases efficiently—by creative and early case assessment and resolution, or by trial and appeal.

Products liability defense in the pharmaceutical and medical device sector remains challenging and complex. Dentons helps you remain on the cutting edge of the law so that you can resolve cases and get back to the business of saving lives and improving people’s health. Dentons gives you access to lawyers and specialists around the world who know your industry and understand your business needs.

We work with you to develop early, effective strategies to assess and reduce liability associated with the creation, development, regulation and implementation of new products. This includes criminal proceedings that can arise from the alleged creation of risk to the health of patients. Our lawyers also provide cost-effective, efficient defense of product claims of all complexities and size: single claims, class actions or mass torts requiring coordinated teams across our offices. And because we know life sciences, we need no on-the-job training.

Count on Dentons to guard and protect your products amid constantly evolving technology, ever-changing legal theories, and aggressive government oversight.

Experience

Fougera Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: Defending an AWP case filed in the State of Louisiana against the client and dozens of other pharmaceutical companies in East Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Our team was able to obtain a favorable settlement.
K-V Pharmaceutical Company: Acting as national coordinating and lead trial counsel for a series of individual, multi-plaintiff, and class action product liability cases related to product recalls occurring in 2008 and 2009. Defending these cases at the trial and appellate level in the federal and state courts in at least 24 states, leanly staffing the matters with a core team from its Dallas office, and drawing also upon the expertise of lawyers in its own offices in Chicago, New York, New Jersey, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington, DC, St. Louis, Kansas City, and Phoenix, our team was able to use its broad experience in the pharmaceutical industry, product liability, class action defense, health care, and consumer protection to strategize across disciplines and jurisdictions and provide the client a coordinated defense and comprehensive service. The cases have been largely resolved to the company's satisfaction via dismissal or following early case assessment and resolution. Most recently, there were two major victories involving class actions. In Lefaivre/Polk v. KV Pharmaceutical Co., our team obtained a second dismissal of the case in which the alleged class of plaintiffs claimed economic injury based upon their purchase of a drug that was later recalled by the company. This case had previously been dismissed, the dismissal was reversed by the Eighth Circuit, and upon remand our team again obtained a dismissal. In Herndon v. KV Pharmaceutical Co., our team defeated class certification in a case in which the alleged class of plaintiffs claimed economic injury based upon their purchase of a number of drugs that were later recalled by the company. Class certification was denied after discovery, briefing and argument in March of 2012.
Monsanto: Winning a significant class action litigation for Monsanto in 13 different corn- and soy-growing states. The original master class actions complaint alleged wide-ranging price-fixing conspiracy between Monsanto and other defendants relating to genetically modified soybean seed products, plus a range of patent and antitrust violations by Monsanto. We successfully opposed certification of a settlement class and, shortly thereafter, a settlement was reached on an individual basis. We also serve as this client's outside patent counsel, processing a substantial portion of their patents and managing patent portfolios worldwide.

Recognition

Dentons’ Litigation and Dispute Resolution group: Steadily growing as a Canadian powerhouse

August 1, 2024

Described by clients as “brilliant, focused and incredibly skilled,” and praised for their “ability to handle complex and sophisticated matters,” Dentons Canada’s Litigation and Dispute Resolution lawyers are increasingly being recognized as powerhouses in the Canadian legal landscape.

Dentons recognized by Best Lawyers in America in 200 categories

August 15, 2017

Dentons, the world's largest law firm, has been recognized by The Best Lawyers in America in 200 categories in the 2018 edition of the highly regarded publication. The ranking highlights 138 individual lawyers from Dentons, including nine who have been recognized for more than 25 years, 51 who have been listed for 10 years and 12 who were included for the first time.

Ten Dentons Practices Ranked in Law360's Top 100 Largest Global Practices

December 1, 2014

Ten Firm practices were included among Law360's lists of the Top 100 largest global practices, with five earning top-five rankings. The Real Estate, M&A and Insurance practices were each ranked fourth in their respective categories, while the Restructuring, Insolvency and Bankruptcy practice and the Environmental and Natural Resources practice were ranked fifth in the Bankruptcy category and the Environmental category, respectively. Firm practices also earned spots among the top 25 in the Securities and White Collar, Competition, Employment, IP and Product Liability categories.

Insights

Australian Privacy Act reforms and Cyber Security Legislative Package passed: What you need to know

December 2, 2024

Australia: On 25 November 2024, the Australian Federal Parliament passed the “Cyber Security Legislative Package” comprising three bills: the Cyber Security Bill 2024, Intelligence Services and Other Legislation Amendment (Cyber Security) Bill 2024 and Security of Critical Infrastructure and Other Legislation Amendment (Enhanced Response and Prevention) Bill 2024. These bills received Royal Assent on 29 November 2024 and have become Acts of Parliament.

Roadmap of new and upcoming EU TMT regulations

July 24, 2024

EU: During 2024 the European Union continued to increase its activities in the TMT field. The new regulations and proposals will significantly affect companies operating in the TMT sector and beyond, prompting accountability and cooperation between the various stakeholders.

Decree 405/2023: Regulatory Framework for the Production, Research, and Commercialization of Cannabis

September 1, 2023

Argentina: On August 7, 2023, the Executive Branch issued a publication in the Official Gazette outlining the regulations specified in Law 27.669. This law establishes the framework for overseeing scientific research, industrial production, and the commercialization of the cannabis plant and its derivatives for medicinal and industrial purposes.

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