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Court: No obligation for company to give teen drug
Legal News |
2008/12/17 09:15
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| A pharmaceutical company does not have to provide an experimental drug to a Minnesota teen who is terminally ill with a rare form of muscular dystrophy, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday in reversing a lower court decision.pThe ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in Philadelphia was a blow to 17-year-old Jacob Gunvalson, who suffers from Duchenne muscular dystrophy./ppThe court ruled that U.S. District Judge William J. Martini in Newark erred in his August ruling that PTC Therapeutics of South Plainfield, N.J., must provide the drug to Gunvalson. That decision had been stayed pending the company's appeal./ppI just think it's really unfair that these drug companies get all these benefits from the federal government, said Jacob's mother, Cheri Gunvalson. And then they're allowing boys to fall through the cracks and die. She said she would not give up her fight but didn't know what the next step would be./ppIn its ruling, the appeals court said it was sympathetic to the plight of Jacob and his family, but that the lower court abused its discretion in ordering PTC to supply the drug to Gunvalson./ppThe Gunvalsons, who live in Gonvick, Minn., maintained that the company led them to believe that Jacob could participate in a clinical trial of the drug, which is being investigated as a possible treatment — and that the company then went back on its word./p |
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Oregon bank bombing suspect charged with murder
Court News |
2008/12/16 09:05
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| Police arrested a suspect late Sunday in the Oregon bank bombing that killed two officers and critically injured a police chief, authorities said.pSheriff Russ Isham of Marion County declined to release the suspect's name, saying it would jeopardize the integrity of the investigation and the safety of officers still working the case./ppWe do believe the person responsible for the bombing is in custody, Deputy District Attorney Courtland Geyer said late Sunday./ppThe suspect was arrested in Salem, located just south of Woodburn, the small city south of Portland where Friday's bombing occurred./ppOfficers made the arrest shortly after Sheriff Russ Isham of Marion County released surveillance photos of a person of interest. Geyer would not say if a tip led to the arrest./ppHe also wouldn't disclose if the man in the photos, apparently taken with a security camera, is the same person in custody./ppIsham would not release the precise location where the arrest took place, and said the suspect's name likely wouldn't be released until Monday afternoon./ppI'm really proud of those who tirelessly worked to get us to this point and am humbled by the community's support, Isham said. We know there is still a lot of hard work ahead of us, but this development will help bring relief to the local community and the officer's families./p |
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Court raises hopes of Hanford radiation plaintiffs
Law Firm News |
2008/12/16 09:04
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| A U.S. Supreme Court decision Monday raised hopes that as many as 2,000 plaintiffs could be compensated for health problems they blame on radiation from a Washington state nuclear site instrumental in the Manhattan Project and the Cold War.pThe court issued a one-line denial of an appeal by contractors who worked at the Hanford nuclear reservation. The contractors — E.I. Du Pont De Nemours amp; Co., General Electric Co. and UNC Nuclear Industries Inc. — were challenging a lower-court ruling last spring that sided largely with the plaintiffs./ppThe people exposed to radiation lived in eastern Washington, eastern Oregon and Idaho, downwind of Hanford, as the U.S. government was developing atomic bombs in the 1940s./ppThe government did not disclose until 1986 that radiation had been released at the site, and since then the downwinders have sought compensation for thyroid cancer and other conditions they believe were caused by the exposure./ppThis is very exciting for us, Richard Eymann, one of the plaintiffs' lawyers in the long-running case, told The Spokesman-Review of Spokane. With a new administration coming in, we want a serious look at compensation for these people after years of litigation./ppSo far, the plaintiffs have not agreed to a settlement offer by the contractors that would compensate them based on the amount of radiation they likely received and the illnesses they have, said Kevin Van Wart, lead attorney in Chicago for the Hanford contractors./p |
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Court allows lawsuits over 'light' cigarettes
Law Firm News |
2008/12/15 09:16
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| The Supreme Court on Monday handed a surprising defeat to tobacco companies counting on it to put an end to lawsuits alleging deceptive marketing of light cigarettes.pIn a 5-4 split won by the court's liberals, it ruled that smokers may use state consumer protection laws to sue cigarette makers for the way they promote light and low tar brands./ppThe decision was at odds with recent anti-consumer rulings that limited state regulation of business in favor of federal power./ppAltria Group Inc. argued on behalf of its Philip Morris USA subsidiary that the lawsuits are barred by the federal cigarette labeling law, which forbids states from regulating any aspect of cigarette advertising that involves smoking and health./ppJustice John Paul Stevens, however, said in his majority opinion that the labeling law does not shield the companies from state laws against deceptive practices. The decision forces tobacco companies to defend dozens of suits filed by smokers in Maine, where the case originated, and across the country./p |
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