Zantac Cancer Lawsuits Return to State Court: Major Win for Plaintiffs

open bottle of Zantac heartburn medication

Appeals Court Ruling Allows 850+ Lawsuits to Proceed Against Drug Manufacturers

In a significant step forward for cancer patients in Connecticut accusing big pharma companies of not providing warnings about the risks of Zantac, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has ruled that nine lawsuits against Zantac manufacturers should be returned to Connecticut state court.

The lawsuits involve over 850 plaintiffs who developed cancer after using the recalled heartburn drug.

This decision follows intense efforts by the cancer patients to keep their cases out of federal jurisdiction, which has dismissed all of the Zantac cancer lawsuits to date—and intense pushback by the pharma companies who claim the cases should be litigated together under the federal system, Reuters reports.

Appeals Court Ruling Allows Zantac Lawsuits to Proceed in State Court

The recent ruling by the Second Circuit Court affirms a prior decision to remand the nine cases to Connecticut state court. The court acknowledged that plaintiffs had structured their lawsuits to avoid federal jurisdiction, and said the tactic was legally allowed. 

The ruling is crucial for the patients who seek justice at the state level after their federal cases were dismissed by U.S. District Judge Robin L. Rosenberg after the judge ruled expert testimony could not be heard in the cases. 

Thousands of claims continue in state courts across the country. The plaintiffs’ push to keep the actions in state courts reflects a broader legal strategy of avoiding federal courts, which have different standards for the admissibility of expert testimony. 

Plaintiffs and Pharmaceutical Companies Clash Over Jurisdiction and Liability

The major pharmaceutical companies who are being accused of hiding the truth about Zantac include GSK and Boehringer Ingelheim, which have both argued that the consolidated nature of the claims under the Class Action Fairness Act meant they fell under federal jurisdiction and should be heard together in the federal system.

However, the appeals court's decision underscored the plaintiffs' right to choose their legal battleground.

Zantac's Rise and Fall: From Popular Heartburn Drug to Cancer Risk

Popular heartburn drug Zantac was created in 1981 and rose to prominence by 1988, becoming a leading treatment for heartburn and ulcers. Manufactured initially by a predecessor of pharmaceutical giant GSK, Zantac's active ingredient, ranitidine, was later sold to several companies, including Pfizer.

However, after nearly four decades, alarming research surfaced, linking ranitidine to cancer. Studies indicated that ranitidine could produce NDMA, a carcinogenic chemical, leading to a massive recall in 2020 that removed all ranitidine products from the market.

Following the research and the recall, the pharmaceutical companies selling Zantac were hit with a slew of legal actions accusing them of not properly warning users about ranitidine's inherent instability and its potential to produce NDMA.

Many plaintiffs in the lawsuits claim that they developed various cancers, including bladder, liver, pancreatic, and stomach cancer, due to Zantac use. 

Legal Battles Continue as Some Companies Opt for Settlements

As the litigation continues, some pharmaceutical companies have opted for settlement agreements. Pfizer and Sanofi have recently settled thousands of claims, while GSK and Boehringer Ingelheim persist in defending their cases, occasionally reaching individual settlements on the brink of trials. 

A notable defense verdict was achieved in Illinois, but Delaware state court recently allowed 75,000 Zantac lawsuits to proceed, deeming the plaintiffs' expert testimony sufficiently reliable for jury consideration.

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