Merck's Super Aspirin was Vioxx
Merck’s popular anti-inflammatory drug Vioxx turned out to be a deadly drug which was recalled in 2004 with numerous lawsuits that followed, including, in Canada, a Class Action claim which took precedence over possible individual claims under Canadian law. Merck fought claims world wide settling in the USA only after a few years. In Australia last year Merck did well after a major test case trial which found liability only in heart attack situations and specifically concluded after much expert evidence that there is no proof that Vioxx causes strokes or other cardiovascular problems.There is a national Vioxx settlement proposed for Court Approval which is to be heard in court in Ontario and Quebec. The amount of the settlement is proportionately much less than the US settlement on a per capita basis. It provides compensation up to $100,000 in heart attack and sudden cardiac death cases and pays an amount capped at $5,000 in stroke cases. Nothing is paid in the settlement for other conditions. This settlement was negotiated with Merck by the Class Action lawyers. The case is not settled until and unless it receives court approval. Our firm acts for a large number of individual clients, and we are determining how each of our clients will benefit (or not) from the settlement). We have now written letters to most of our clients who do not qualify for compensation under the settlement to advise them of their rights. The settlement is binding on all claims unless specifically excluded. We had only one client with a stroke case who chose to opt out and then has rejected the settlement. We no longer act for that individual and we are not aware of anyone else who is not bound by the Class Action settlement if it proceeds. We have other clients who clearly benefit from the settlement and we will be writing them to confirm what is needed from them to allow us to apply on their behalves for compensation if the settlement is approved. For some of our clients it is unclear if they qualify and we are also carefully reviewing those files. For people who are not represented by lawyers yet, we are still on request, reviewing situations and accepting retainers in cases that are likely to qualify for compensation. See details of the proposed settlement:
http://vioxxnationalclassaction.ca/
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