Many medications that are supposed to help patients actually end up causing very serious side effects. Some drugs cause birth defects. For example, selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors (SSRIs) have been linked to persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn (PPHN), cardiac defects, spina bifida, club feet, cleft palates and other birth defects, while the anti-seizure medication Topamax has been linked to oral cleft palates in infants exposed during pregnancy. Others cause harm to patients who take the medications, such as the diabetes drug Actos that has been linked to an increased risk of bladder cancer.
If you are affected by a defective drug, you have certain legal rights. Drug manufacturers can be held accountable in a product liability lawsuit, but it is up to you to take action and make a damage claim. Carey, Danis & Lowe can help you to stand up to pharmaceutical manufacturers and get the money you need and deserve for harm caused by medications that you take.
Proving a Defective Drug Case in St. Louis
To make a successful case based on damage from a defective drug, you need to prove that the medication was the cause of harm to you or your child. You can also recover damages if the defendant failed to warn you of the risks of the drug. For example, you will need to show that the drug was the cause of the birth defect or that the drug was the reason that you developed cancer.
Expert testimony, medical studies, FDA recall notices, and information from the company including pre and post market test results can all help you to make a defective drug case. It can sometimes be difficult to show that the drug caused harm, especially for conditions like cancer that have no specific known cause. Because of the challenge in proving your case, it is important to have a lawyer with extensive experience in dangerous drug claims.
When you make your case, however, you do not need to prove that the drug manufacturer was negligent. Unlike many personal injury cases, carelessness is not required to hold drug companies accountable for losses. This is because strict liability rules apply so drug makers are always responsible when medications cause unexpected harm when used as intended.
In addition to making a strict liability argument, victims injured by defective drugs can also claim negligence if they can demonstrate the manufacturer was careless in designing, manufacturing or marketing the medication. Failure to warn and breach of express or implied warranty are also two other legal arguments that can be made in a defective drug case.
An experienced attorney will help you to decide on the best legal strategy to pursue to make your claim and obtain monetary damages for dangerous drugs. Call Carey, Danis & Lowe today to speak with an experienced member of our legal team and to learn more about how our attorneys can help with your defective drug case in St. Louis.
