Merck (MRK) Vioxx Securities Fraud Lawyers Lawsuit Attorney Fraud
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Merck & Co. investors who lost money because of the Vioxx debacle may still be able to file individual securities fraud lawsuits against the drug maker. In November 2009, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a Merck shareholder class action lawsuit stemming from the Vioxx controversy. According to various media outlets, several Supreme Court Justices appeared skeptical about Merck's claims that investors had waited too long to file the lawsuit.
Merck & Co. investors who lost money because of the Vioxx debacle may still be able to file individual securities fraud lawsuits against the drug maker.
If the Supreme Court does reject Merck's arguments, shareholders who suffered financial losses as a result of the company's alleged Vioxx misrepresentations may still be able to bring suit against the pharmaceutical company. To prepare for this possibility, our Vioxx securities fraud lawyers are already offering free consultations to any Merck shareholder whose reliance on the company's positive Vioxx statements caused them to lose money on their investment.
The Vioxx Controversy
Vioxx was approved for use in 1999, and quickly became a bestseller for Merck, with annual sales of $2.5 billion. The painkiller was pulled off the market in 2004 after an analysis of patients using Vioxx linked the defective drug to more than 27,000 heart attacks or sudden cardiac deaths in the U.S. from 1999 through 2003. The withdrawal prompted thousands of product liability lawsuits that claimed Merck didn’t properly warn doctors and patients of the drug’s risks.
Merck stock took a big hit because of the controversy surrounding Vioxx. In November 2003, following publication of the results from a Harvard University study that found Vioxx users faced an increased risk of heart attack, Merck investors filed a class action lawsuit against the drug maker. Plaintiffs alleged Merck had misled them by downplaying the significance of clinical-trial results that appeared to show that patients taking Vioxx faced an increased risk of heart attack. The investors said this alleged deception caused them to pay inflated prices for Merck's stock.
Merck has tried to block the class action lawsuit by arguing that plaintiffs' brought their claims outside of the two-year statute of limitations for filing securities lawsuits set by federal law. In oral arguments before the Supreme Court, Merck argued that investors should have suspected possible fraud by late 2001, after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) sent the company a warning letter in September alleging that it misrepresented the safety profile of Vioxx by minimizing the drug's potential to increase a patient's risk of heart attack.
Merck also pointed to a 2000 study that compared Vioxx to naproxen, in which Vioxx was found to result in a five-fold increased risk for heart attacks. But when that study was actually published, officials at Merck continually argued against the findings, insisting that they were the result of naproxen’s heart-protecting abilities, rather than problems with Vioxx.
Various media outlets have reported that many of the nine justices appeared unconvinced by Merck's arguments. During questioning, Justices Antonin Scalia and Ruth Bader Ginsburg suggested the 2001 FDA letter demonstrated only that Merck had made misrepresentations, not that it knowingly committed fraud. Justice Stephen Breyer said Merck's position didn't "make sense", and would require plaintiffs to file lawsuits before they had enough evidence to back them up.
Legal experts have said that the questions posed by most of the nine justices suggested they are prepared to let shareholders sue Merck for alleged deception about the risks posed by Vioxx. A ruling against Merck in this case would greatly relax the deadlines for investor fraud lawsuits.
Legal Help for Merck & Co. Shareholders
The Supreme Court is expected to rule on the Merck Vioxx matter sometime in June 2010. Our Vioxx securities fraud lawyers are working on the assumption that the Court will reject Merck's arguments, and allow investors to file securities fraud suits against the drug maker. We are already preparing to file individual lawsuits on behalf of Merck shareholders who suffered financial losses as a result of the Vioxx debacle.
If you lost money on your Merck & Co. investments because of the company's misrepresentation regarding Vioxx, you may be eligible to file an individual securities fraud lawsuit once the Supreme Court makes its ruling. It is vital that you prepare for this possibility now in order to protect your legal rights. To arrange for a free consultation with one of our Vioxx securities fraud lawyers, please fill out our online form, or call 1 800 LAW INFO (1-800-529-4636) today.