In a judicial order regarding Lipitor lawsuits and allegations of adverse side effects, the United States JPML concluded there were insufficient product liability claims in the federal court system to validate the coordination of such cases into multidistrict litigation, or MDL. The panel was presented with a motion this past April by a group of plaintiffs who identified five similar lawsuits that had been filed in district courts throughout the country. The panel heard oral arguments on July 25, and despite the knowledge of at least two dozen additional Lipitor lawsuits in the federal system, the JPML was disinclined to consolidate claims.

Lipitor is one of the country’s most widely-prescribed statins and is used to help lower cholesterol to healthier levels. However, plaintiffs say that the medication caused them to develop Type 2 diabetes, and that manufacturer Pfizer failed to adequately warn consumers and the prescribing medical community of such risks. Though pre-trial management of Lipitor diabetes lawsuits would be beneficial for litigants, the panel based its ruling in part on the fact that more than 50 percent of the pending claims have already been centralized in the District of South Carolina, where defendant Pfizer states the company has agreed to organize discovery and other pretrial proceedings across the cases.

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JPML decides against formation of Lipitor MDL

Judge John G. Heyburn III, Chairman of the JPML stated, “Although plaintiffs suggest that the number of Lipitor cases is likely to expand considerably, we are disinclined to take into account the mere possibility of future filings in our centralization calculus.” He added, “Lipitor came to market in the late 1990′s and is one of the best-selling prescription drugs of all time. Virtually all of the complaints in these actions cite a label change for the drug – as well as other statins – informing patients that increases in blood sugar levels had been reported with statin use. That label change, however, occurred in February 2012. Yet, more than a year later, only a relative handful of actions have been brought actually alleging a link between an individual’s ingestion of Lipitor and the development of her type 2 diabetes.”

Since Pfizer has indicated its willingness to work with plaintiff’s attorneys on all pre-trial processes in South Carolina federal court, and there are a comparatively few actions at this time, the panel determined that all Lipitor product liability claims would proceed on an individual basis at this time.

This decision may mean an overall slower litigation process, with claimants waiting months or years to recover compensation for their alleged injuries. For some, the complications and expenses that accompany a diabetes diagnosis may become unbearable, putting them in financial jeopardy.

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