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The Atlanta Legal Examiner provides coverage of personal injury, mass torts, and safety issues making headlines in Atlanta and across the country. Our Latest News section brings together breaking stories and legal insights that matter to individuals, families, and communities.

Jury Awards $9 Million In Punitives In Vioxx Trial

A jury reached a $9 million verdict today regarding the punitive damages phase of the latest Vioxx Trial involving John McDarby and his wife. This verdict comes just days after the same jury awarded John McDarby and his wife $4.5 million in compensatory damages for his related heart attack while usi

By M. Brandon Smith

/ 11 Apr 2006

Jury Awards $9 Million In Punitives In Vioxx Trial

$4.5 Million Awarded To Former Vioxx User

A new Jersey jury found Vioxx had concealed the dangers of its painkiller Vioxx and awarded one of the two plaintiff’s $4.5 million dollars in compensatory damages. A second trial for the sole purpose of determining if punitive damages should be awarded is scheduled to start today. Generally, puniti

By M. Brandon Smith

/ 6 Apr 2006

$4.5 Million Awarded To Former Vioxx User

Sunscreen Manufactures Sued In A Class Action Suit

Five of the nation’s top sunscreen manufactures have been named as defendants in a recently filed class action suit for allegedly making false and misleading claims about the effectiveness of their products. The suit claims these sunscreen producers created a false sense of security in its consumers

By M. Brandon Smith

/ 3 Apr 2006

Sunscreen Manufactures Sued In A Class Action Suit

12 Year-Old Given Permission To Drive Ends In Two Deaths

A 12 year-old girl driving a Ford F-250 recently ran off the road in Long County killing both herself and another 8 year-old passenger. Three other children were also injured in the accident when the vehicle overturned and landed in a nearby ditch. According to the William Goodwin of the Georgia Sta

By M. Brandon Smith

/ 3 Apr 2006

12 Year-Old Given Permission To Drive Ends In Two Deaths

Mad Cow Lawsuit Filed In Georgia

Lawyers for Tracy Price, a Henry County school teacher, filed a lawsuit against Emory University Hospital for exposing her to the human form of mad cow disease. Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, or CJD as it is more commonly known, is a degenerative brain disease that causes dementia, muscle problems and e

By M. Brandon Smith

/ 31 Mar 2006

$5.6 Million Dollar Screwdriver

A jury recently awarded $5.6 million to the family of Arturo Iturralde who had a screwdriver implanted in his spine after an orthopedic surgeon misplaced two titanium rods during the surgery. After cutting off the handle and placing the shaft of a stainless steel screwdriver in his patient’s back, t

By M. Brandon Smith

/ 28 Mar 2006

Baycol Class Action Settlement Approved

A state judge in Philadelphia approved a class action settlement against Bayer, the German manufacture of Baycol, that would re-pay unions, employers and various health plans for money spent on the withdrawn drug Baycol. The national class action suit could result in a settlement that exceeds $10 mi

By M. Brandon Smith

/ 22 Mar 2006

$50 Million Tobacco Verdict Stands

The United States Supreme Court refused to review a $50 million damage award against Phillip Morris where a former 2-pack a day smoker died of cancer. The tobacco manufacture, which controls nearly half of the United States tobacco market, asked that the award be declared unconstitutionally excessiv

By M. Brandon Smith

/ 20 Mar 2006

Dietary Supplement or Illegal Steroid?

The FDA recently warned several manufactures and distributors to stop selling unapproved drugs that contain steroids promising increased muscle, strength, and weight loss. The FDA expressed concerns that products such as Anabolic Xtreme Superdrol or Methyl-1-P by Legal Gear may cause long-term healt

By M. Brandon Smith

/ 14 Mar 2006

Tips On Preventing Hospital Bed Entrapment

Each year there are number of people who become entrapped in hospital beds and suffer serious injuries as a result. Entrapments can occur when a patient’s body becomes lodged between the bed rails, the mattress or various other parts of a hospital bed. Injuries suffered in this manner can lead to br

By M. Brandon Smith

/ 14 Mar 2006

Tips On Preventing Hospital Bed Entrapment

Advair and Serevent Get New Black Box Warning

The FDA has announced that the popular asthma medications Advair and Serevent will now contain a new “black box” warning after discovering the medications may cause an increased risk of asthma-related death. Black box warnings are the most severe warnings the FDA can require of prescription drugs. A

By M. Brandon Smith

/ 8 Mar 2006

Advair and Serevent Get New Black Box Warning

New Jersey Vioxx Trial Begins Today

In the latest round of litigation surrounding the controversial drug Vioxx, jurors in New Jersey heard opening statements from both sides today in what could be the most pivotal Vioxx trial yet. Merck, the former producer of Vioxx, has received two defense verdicts involving the pain killer to date

By M. Brandon Smith

/ 6 Mar 2006