MDL Trial Date for Yaz Pulmonary Embolism Lawsuit Postponed

The first federal Yaz birth control trial has been pushed back, providing attorneys additional time to conduct discovery so that they can better understand and argue the complex scientific and health issues involved in the litigation over Yaz and Yasmin. 

On April 12, Chief Judge David R. Herndon, who is presiding over federal Yaz lawsuits, Yasmin lawsuits and generic Ocella lawsuits, vacated a September 12, 2011 trial date and provided additional time for the parties to conduct depositions before naming expert witnesses for the first bellwether trial, which will involve a lawsuit that alleges the plaintiff suffered a pulmonary embolism from Yaz or Yasmin birth control.

The order comes about a month after Yaz attorneys involved in the litigation filed a motion to extend deadlines for the discovery process. In the request, the parties proposed that the first trial date for a Yaz pulmonary embolism lawsuit be pushed back from September 12, 2011 to January 9, 2012. However, Judge Herndon declined to establish a new trial date during a status conference held last week, indicating that the first trial will be rescheduled at a later date.

Bayer faces about 7,000 lawsuits over the birth control pills, which have been consolidated and centralized for pretrial proceedings as part of an MDL, or multidistrict litigation, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois before Judge Herndon. There are also hundreds of cases filed at the state level in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

All of the lawsuits involve allegations that women taking the birth control pills suffered serious health problems from Yaz, Yasmin or Ocella. Approximately 10% of the cases involve women who allege that they suffered a heart attack or stroke from Yaz. Approximately 40% of the cases involve venus thromboembolisms (VTE), which include deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolisms from yaz. The remaining claims involve Yasmin or Yaz gallbladder injuries, with many of the cases resulting in women having their gallbladder removed.

According to a previous case management order, Judge Herndon decided to prepare a small group of cases for three early Yaz trials, known as bellwether trials because they are used to help the parties gauge the strengths and weaknesses of the cases. The first trial will involve a pulmonary embolism lawsuit, the second trial will involve a gallbladder lawsuit and the third trial will involve another venus thromboemolism. These early trials are used to help the parties gauge the strengths and weaknesses of other cases involved in the litigation, and may be helpful in facilitating a possible Yaz settlement agreement.