A jury today awarded $1.3 million in compensatory damages in the first diet drug trial held in which the plaintiff was bound by the limitations of the American Home Products National Settlement
Deborah D. Hayes' attorney, James A. Morris Jr. of Provost & Umphrey in Beaumont, said the jury awarded $50,000 for past mental anguish, $500,000 for future mental anguish and $810,000 for future medical expenses. He said he expected the future medical expense award to be reduced to the point where the total verdict would be around $600,000.
Morris said Hayes, 46, suffers mild aortic regurgitation.
Opt-out cases may not seek punitive damages; as a result, U.S. Judge Harvey Bartle III of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania has issued injunctions barring much of the evidence of alleged Wyeth wrongdoing from trials. Morris said the trial was conducted in accordance with those limitations.
"What this tells everyone is, even given the limitations, there is still value in these cases, and this is a siren call to the parties to get their heads together and resolve this in a non-adversarial way," Morris said.
11/06/03
