Vioxx
Here is the notice of certification for residents of all provinces and territories except Québec and Saskatchewan. Please read it carefully and specially the section about your right to opt-out of this class action if you do not want to be involved in this class action. The opt-out deadline is July 1, 2010.
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Authorized by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice THE CLASS ACTION This notice is directed to: (b) the “Family Class” which is defined as all persons who by reason The class action seeks, among other things, damages for personal injury suffered by Class members who ingested Vioxx and consequential damages suffered by the Family Class. THE CERTIFICATION ORDER On July 28, 2008, the action was certified as a class proceeding by order of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice. The order appointed Benny Mignacca as the representative plaintiff for the Class and Elaine Mignacca as the representative for the Family Class. COSTS TO THE CLASS IF THE ACTION IS SUCCESSFUL Counsel have entered into an agreement with the representative plaintiffs with respect to legal fees and disbursements. The agreement provides that Counsel will not receive payment for their work unless and until the class action is successful or costs are received from the defendants. The agreement provides that, if the action is successful, counsel will be entitled to a fee payable out of the amount recovered under a judgment or settlement of the action. The amount of the fee would require court approval. PARTICIPATION IN THE CLASS ACTION Members of the Class and Family Class who want to participate in the class action are automatically included and need not do anything at this time. The Class Proceedings Act provides that no such member, other than the representative plaintiffs, will incur liability for legal costs if the action is dismissed. If the Court determines the common issues in favour of the class, the Court may consider that the participation of individual Class and Family Class members is required to determine individual issues unique to each individual member. Each class member will be entitled to decide whether to participate further. If a member chooses to participate further in individual proceedings he or she may have to bear the legal costs of that individual proceeding and, if unsuccessful, could be liable to pay a portion of the defendants’ costs incurred in respect of that individual proceeding. YOU MUST OPT OUT IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO PARTICIPATE IN THE CLASS ACTION Class members and the Family Class members who do not want to participate in the class action must opt out. If you want to opt out of the class action, you must send a written, signed election, including your name, address, telephone number to: Howie & Partners, Chartered Accountants, 3063 Walker Road, Windsor, ON. No Class member or Family Class member will be permitted to opt out of the class action unless the election to opt out is received by Howie & Partners before July 1, 2010 at 5:00 p.m. E.T. Each Class member and Family Class member who does not opt out of the class action will be bound by the terms of any judgment or settlement whether favourable or not and will not be allowed to prosecute an independent action. If the class action is successful, he or she may be entitled to share in the amount of any award or settlement recovered. No person may opt out a minor or a mentally incapable member of the Class or Family Class without permission of the court after notice to The Children’s Lawyer and/or the Public Guardian and Trustee, as appropriate. The family members of any Class member who opts out will be deemed to have opted out. If a Class member is deceased, his or her estate trustee has the right to opt out. A Class member or Family Class member who opts out will not be entitled to participate in the class action. His or her right to pursue a claim in a separate proceeding will not be affected. PRESERVATION OF MEDICAL RECORDS Each member of the Class, including estates, who wishes to participate in the Vioxx class action should take all reasonable steps to preserve pharmaceutical and medical records. For further information on how to request the preservation of records or for assistance respecting same, please contact Class Counsel. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION This Notice was approved by order of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice. The court offices will by unable to answer any questions about the matters in this Notice. The certification order and other information are available on the Vioxx web site at http://www.vioxxnationalclassaction.com. Questions for Class Counsel should be directed by email or telephone to: Harvey T. Strosberg, Q.C. Tel: 1.800.229.5323 (toll free) Michael J. Peerless Tel: 1.800.461.6166 ext. 2409 (toll free) Bonnie Tough Tel: 1.416.348.7500 Joel Rochon Tel: 1.866.881.2292 (toll free) |
THE HISTORY OF THIS ACTION
In November 2007, Merck & Co. announced that it had agreed conditionally to settle a significant portion of the Vioxx claims in the U.S., setting aside approximately $4.85 billion to do so. Even though those cases deal with the exact same drug as the Canadian litigation, Merck has, to date, made no effort to establish a parallel settlement for Canadian users of Vioxx and Merck Frosst Canada Ltd. has publicly and repeatedly stated its intention to vigorously defend all Vioxx lawsuits in Canada.
The defendants have raised various procedural hurdles which have slowed the progress of the litigation. As a result, all Vioxx lawsuits in Canada remain in various stages of litigation.
RESIDENTS OF ALL PROVINCES AND TERRITORIES EXCEPT FOR QUÉBEC AND SASKATCHEWAN
In Ontario, there is a national class action which has been brought on behalf of all Canadian users of Vioxx and their family members other than those in Québec and Saskatchewan. A consortium of 19 law firms from all across Canada has come together to collectively represent Canadians in this lawsuit and advance the strongest case possible.
On July 28, 2008, the action was certified as a class proceeding for all persons "in Canada, including their estates, other than residents of Québec and Saskatchewan, who were prescribed and ingested Vioxx". Family of class members may also be permitted to claim for the injury or death of a class member. In the same reasons, Justice Cullity denied Merck's motion to stay the action. The decision is available at http://www.vioxxcanadaclassaction.com/documents/615537_reasons.pdf.
After various appeals, Merck's appeal was conclusively denied by the Supreme Court on October 22, 2009.
RESIDENTS OF QUÉBEC
On November 9, 2006, Justice Andre Denis of the Québec Superior Court authorized a class action for Québec residents who suffered damages caused by the use of Vioxx. That case pertains to residents of Québec only and is also continuing to work its way through the legal system.
RESIDENTS OF SASKATCHEWAN
A separate case launched in Saskatchewan was initially certified as a class action in a decision released on February 20, 2008. This decision was appealed successfully by Merck. However the National Counsel Team is cooperating with Saskatchewan counsel to achieve a certified class in Saskatchewan in the near future.
MOVING FORWARD
Because Merck has not, to date, indicated any willingness to make any settlement proposal for Canadian Vioxx users, in spite of their multi-billion dollar settlement proposal in the US, the current strategy of the National Counsel Team is to drive the Ontario litigation forward and deal with the case on the merits. The time for class members to make any necessary decisions about how to advance their individual claims will arise after these various proceedings have been finally determined following a common issues trial. It is unfortunately not possible to predict with certainty how long this process may take; however updates will be provided as they become available.
As members of the National Counsel Team, we wish to express our appreciation to all class members for their patience to date with this complex litigation and we wish to assure you all that everything is being done to ensure that you receive the justice you so rightly deserve.
CLASS MEMBERS
Class members who want to participate in the class action are automatically included and need not do anything at this time. No class member, other than the representative plaintiffs, will be liable for legal costs if the action is dismissed.
Class members or members of their families who are Canadian residents outside of Québec or Saskatchewan and do not want to participate in the class action must opt out. If you want to opt out of the class action, you must send a written, signed election, including your name, address, telephone number to: Howie & Partners, Chartered Accountants, 3063 Walker Road, Windsor, ON, N8W 3R4. No class member will be permitted to opt out of the class action unless the election to opt out is received by Howie & Partners before July 1, 2010 at 5:00 p.m. E.T.
If you are interested in participating in this action, please contact Carolyn of our office by email at craber@stevensonlaw.net or by telephone at 416-599-7900 ext. 300.
For further information on this action please visit http://vioxxnationalclassaction.ca/.
| IMPORTANT NOTE: This website only provides general information to potential class members about a class action that has been commenced against Merck & Co., Inc., Merck Frosst Canada Ltd. and Merck Frosst Canada & Co. The claim alleges that the defendants (Merck) were negligent in manufacturing, distributing and selling Vioxx® in Canada from its introduction in Canada on October 25, 1999 until it was withdrawn worldwide on September 30, 2004. This site is not designed to answer questions about your individual situation or entitlement. You should not rely upon the information as legal advice in respect of your individual situation nor use it as a substitute for individual legal advice. The information collected about potential class members will assist counsel in prosecuting the class action and assessing what damages were suffered by the class as a whole. Providing the information requested does not make you the client of Stevensons LLP. The court will ultimately decide who will be included as a class member. This website will be updated from time to time to provide potential class members with information as it becomes available. |