Food manufacturing giant ConAgra is facing a flood of products liability lawsuits stemming from the company’s February 2007 recall of Peter Pan and Great Value peanut butter products due to salmonella contamination.
United States
Federal District Court Rules That FDA Regulations Do Not Preempt State Law Claims, Allows State Failure To Warn Claims Against Pharmaceutical Company To Proceed
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
The Federal District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana recently held that state failure-to-warn claims are not preempted by the labeling requirements of the Food and Drug Administration.
West Virginia Rejects The Learned Intermediary Doctrine
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
In a case of first impression in West Virginia, the state Supreme Court of Appeals recently specifically declined to adopt the learned intermediary doctrine.
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Important National Health Care Reform Bills Awaiting Action By Congress
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
On January 17, 2007, lawmakers in the House and Senate introduced identical bills (H.R. 506 and S. 325) aimed at funding innovative State initiatives that expand coverage and access to the uninsured and improve quality and efficiency in the health care system. The bills, the “Health Partnership Act”
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Writ of Mandamus Requested Against New Orleans City Agencies, City Officials, and Related Insurance Companies
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
Katrina Justice, Inc., a New Orleans not for profit corporation, recently petitioned for a writ of mandamus in the Civil District Court, Parish of New Orleans, State of Louisiana. The defendants in the civil action include the City of New Orleans, Mayor C. Ray Nagin, the Orleans Parish School Board and Superintendent Darryl Kilbert, as well as unidentified insurance companies.
Fifth Circuit Analyzes Louisiana’s Valued Policy Law
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
On August 6, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans issued an important decision on the application of Louisiana’s Valued Policy Law (“VPL”) to Katrina losses by unanimously affirming a ruling in favor of insurers.
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Oral Argument Heard on One of the First Katrina-Related Insurance Trial Verdicts
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
Oral arguments on appeal were recently heard on one of the first verdicts handed down in a Katrina-related insurance trial. Arguments on the appeal of Leonard v. Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company were heard on August 6 before the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.
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Scruggs In The News – Special Prosecutors Appointed to Prosecute Scruggs on Criminal Contempt Charges
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
As previously reported here, a Northern District of Alabama judge recently asked federal prosecutors to charge Mississippi plaintiff’s attorney Richard “Dickie” Scruggs with criminal contempt. It is alleged that Scruggs violated a preliminary injunction issued in December 2006, which ordered him to turn over all documents secretly copied by two whistleblowers, Corgi Rigsby Moran and Kerri Rigsby.
Tellabs Applied: Discounting Allegations Made By “Confidential Witnesses”
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
Posted in D&O Liability, United States
The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit recently affirmed dismissal of a securities class action complaint based on the PSLRA pleadings standard clarified by the United States Supreme Court in Tellabs.
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Court Awards $8,490,666 In Damages, Including $6,000,000 In Punitive Damages, In Bad Faith Action Involving Policy With A $100,000 Limit
By Troutman Pepper Locke on
In a bad faith case involving wrongful denial of coverage of a wrongful death suit, a Pennsylvania Court awarded the policyholder’s assignee $8,490,666 in damages, despite the fact that the policyholder had pled guilty to voluntary manslaughter.