Pennsylvania Legal News Articles & Interviews

Philadelphia, PA On October 26, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals revived a wage & hour lawsuit originally filed by oil rig workers in 2011. At its heart, Tyger v. Precision Drilling Corp. is a “donning and doffing” lawsuit. Rodney Tyger, Shawn Wadsworth and approximately 1,000 other rig hands seek to recover unpaid overtime, allegedly due under the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). It’s not over yet; the Third Circuit remanded the lawsuit back to the District Court for further proceedings.

Gibsonia, PA: Tucked in amongst a seemingly never-ending barrage of positivity stemming from the Unum camp with regard to investment, expansion and financial performance are the ever-lurking Unum insurance lawsuits alleging bad faith insurance and similar frustrations after an insurer that happily accepts monthly premiums suddenly does an about-face and pulls that plug when it comes time to pay up.

Philadelphia, PA: All eyes are on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, as justices with the highest hall of justice in the State debate whether, or not to hear an appeal of a lower court ruling that could put an undetermined number of Risperdal gynecomastia lawsuits currently housed in a mass tort, in jeopardy.

Philadelphia, PA: With three new bellwether Xarelto bleeding issue trials set to begin next month in Philadelphia, defendants Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals and Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc. are pushing back against attempts by plaintiffs to amend the master complaint in the Xarelto mass tort. In spite of the fact defendants won the first three bellwether trials - and stood by while a multi-million dollar award to a plaintiff this past December was voided in post-trial motions - Bayer and Janssen nonetheless feel that an amended master complaint so close to trial would significantly prejudice them in their attempts to present a coherent defense.

York, PA: Last month a group of women, including "Essure Problems" Facebook representatives and Madris Tomes from Device Events, met with FDA chief Scott Gottlieb in an attempt to have the Essure sterilization device withdrawn from the U.S. market. At the meeting, Tomes presented data from the FDA's own MAUDE ((Manufacturer and User Facility Device Experience) database that the FDA and their legal counsel in attendance were seemingly unaware of. One would think the FDA may be embarrassed being caught off-guard like this, to say the least.

Pittsburgh, PA: Viola Chapman began taking Onglyza and Kombiglyze XR (Saxagliptin) to treat her type 2 diabetes in February 2015. By December, as her Onglyza lawsuit claims, those drugs had caused heart failure, congestive heart failure and cardiovascular injury.

Philadelphia, PA: A jury verdict in favor of the plaintiff in a bellwether Xarelto lawsuit that was in danger of being overturned was, indeed tossed - but not for reasons that had been previously speculated.

Philadelphia, PA: A ruling by three appeal court judges in Pennsylvania has turned the tables on Johnson & Johnson (J&J) and Janssen saying that some 5,500 Risperdal plaintiffs with cases consolidated in a state mass tort litigation have the right to pursue punitive damages.

Orlando, FL:At the beginning of last year, Takata—the automotive parts company behind the largest automotive recall in the nation’s history—entered into a plea agreement with the United States Department of Justice (DOJ). The company then declared bankruptcy a few months later, setting off an avalanche of legal filings throughout the world, with an international corporate restructuring effort continuing to this day. “It’s critical to remember that as this process plays out, consumers have and will continue to be hurt and killed by rupturing airbags,” says attorney Frank Melton of Newsome Melton, PA.

New Orleans, LA:With three federal bellwether cases having gone to the defendant and a fourth in state court favoring the plaintiff, the judge heading up the 18,500 consolidated cases in federal court has signaled he is looking for guidance from the various parties involved, with oral arguments on the docket for the end of the month following a status report. The Xarelto Lawsuit MDL is under the guidance and management of US District Judge Eldon Fallon in US District Court, Eastern District of Louisiana.