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Longs v. Wyeth

Longs v. Wyeth

United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Eastern Division

February 28, 2008, Decided; February 29, 2008, Filed

Case No.: 1:03 CV 2042

Opinion

 [*845]  ORDER

Plaintiff Ramona Longs 1 ("Plaintiff" or Longs") brings the above-captioned lawsuit as  [**2] executor of the estate of decedent Mary Buchanan ("Buchanan"), alleging product liability claims against Defendants Wyeth, et al. (collectively, "Defendants" or "Wyeth"). 2 Now pending before the court are Defendants' Motion for Partial Summary Judgment Based on Federal Preemption (ECF No. 34); Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment Based on Lack of Evidence of Proximate Causation (ECF No. 31); and Defendants' Motion for Partial Summary Judgment Relating to Punitive Damages (ECF No. 33). For the reasons stated below, the Motions are denied as moot to the extent that they address Plaintiff's failure to warn claim, which Plaintiff has withdrawn. Consequently, Plaintiff's failure to warn claim is hereby dismissed with prejudice. Furthermore, Defendants' Motion for Partial Summary Judgment Based on Federal Preemption (ECF No. 34) is granted in part and denied in part; Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment Based on Lack of Evidence of Proximate Causation (ECF No. 31) is granted, and Defendants' Motion for Partial Summary Judgment Relating to Punitive Damages (ECF No. 33) is denied as moot. As a result of the above rulings, Plaintiff's case is hereby dismissed in its entirety.

I. FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

According to Plaintiff, Buchanan ingested the diet pill Redux for several months during 1996 and  [**4] 1997. (Am. Compl. P 6.) In November, 2001, Buchanan was diagnosed with primary pulmonary hypertension ("PPH"). (Id. P 7.) Buchanan died on December 18, 2003, allegedly as a result of PPH. (Id.)

Defendants marketed and sold the drug Redux. (Answer 2-3, 8, ECF No. 4.) Redux was approved by the FDA in April, 1996. (See FDA Approval Letter, Defs.' Ex. A, ECF No. 33.) Redux became available to the public in June, 1996 (4/30/96 [*846]  Letter, Defs.' Ex. E, ECF No. 31) and was taken off the market on or about September 15, 1997. (Answer P 26.)

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536 F. Supp. 2d 843 *; 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 15748 **

RAMONA LONGS, as Executor of the Estate of Mary Buchanan, Plaintiff v. WYETH, et al., Defendants

Subsequent History: Motion denied by Longs v. Wyeth, 621 F. Supp. 2d 504, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 27112 (N.D. Ohio, 2009)

Affirmed in part and reversed in part by, Vacated by, in part, Remanded by Wimbush v. Wyeth, 2010 U.S. App. LEXIS 17184 (6th Cir.) (6th Cir. Ohio, 2010)

CORE TERMS

warnings, Defendants', design defect, labeling, burden of proof, summary judgment, preempted, negligence claim, failure to warn, letters, drugs, summary judgment motion, patients, bears, cases, adequate warning, instant case, adequacy, federal preemption, punitive damages, negligent design, material fact, matter of law, state law, dexfenfluramine, prescribed, genuine, parties, moot, safe

Civil Procedure, Judgments, Summary Judgment, Evidentiary Considerations, Evidence, Testimony, Credibility of Witnesses, General Overview, Entitlement as Matter of Law, Burdens of Proof, Nonmovant Persuasion & Proof, Scintilla Rule, Antitrust & Trade Law, Consumer Protection, Deceptive Labeling & Packaging, Federal Food, Drug & Cosmetic Act, Torts, Procedural Matters, Preemption, Products Liability, Preclusion of Judgments, Inferences & Presumptions, Presumptions, Rebuttal of Presumptions, Types of Defects, Design Defects, Causation, Proximate Cause, Marketing & Warning Defects, Allocation, Theories of Liability, Negligence