WILMINGTON, DELAWARE – MAY 16, 2023 - - Wisner Baum managing partner and senior trial attorney R. Brent Wisner will be co-lead trial counsel in the Zantac (Ranitidine) Products Liability litigation (Civil Action No. N22C-09-101 ZAN) in Delaware Superior Court.
The Honorable Judge Vivian L. Medinilla named Wisner and three other lawyers to the leadership position in a Case Management Order that applies to all personal injury and wrongful death cases currently pending in the Superior Court of the State of Delaware that involve the use of prescription or over-the-counter Zantac (or any ranitidine-containing product).
Wisner will be joined by Jennifer A. Moore (Moore Law Group), Raeann Warner (Jacobs & Crumplar), and Justin Parafinczuk (Parafinczuk Wolf) in the plaintiffs’ leadership, which is responsible for presenting the plaintiffs’ position in all pretrial matters, initiating and coordinating pretrial discovery, and more. Wisner and Moore also co-lead the Zantac Judicial Council Coordinated Proceedings (JCCP) in California, overseeing more than 5,000 cases pending there.
“The formation of a new venue for these cases creates more opportunity for our clients and other people throughout the country stricken with cancer after taking a drug that we believe is dangerous,” says attorney R. Brent Wisner. “We look forward to presenting evidence at trial that Zantac causes cancer, and that the defendants have known about the risks for decades.”
“GSK’s own scientists knew the risks Zantac posed to the public even before the FDA approved the drug,” says attorney Jennifer A. Moore. “They should have warned about the risks but, sensing the potential for a billion dollar blockbuster drug, the company chose profits over people. It’s time for them to take responsibility for the harm they have caused.”
More than 77,000 people from across the nation have cases filed in Delaware state court and allege in lawsuits that Zantac contains a known carcinogen called N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA). Plaintiffs in the litigation ingested Zantac and developed the following cancers:
- Bladder cancer
- Breast cancer
- Colorectal cancer
- Esophageal cancer
- Gastric cancer / stomach cancer
- Liver cancer
- Lung cancer
- Pancreatic cancer
- Prostate cancer
The Zantac lawsuits in Delaware are against the following defendants:
- GlaxoSmithKline LLC (GSK): The original developer of Zantac (ranitidine). GSK received approval to market prescription Zantac in 1983 and it quickly became one of the company’s most successful products. GSK controlled the New Drug Application (NDA) for prescription Zantac between 1983 and 2009.
- Pfizer Inc.: In 1993, Pfizer entered into a joint venture with Glaxo to develop an over the counter (OTC) Zantac, which became available in 1996. Pfizer retained the rights to sell OTC Zantac domestically and retained ownership over the Zantac trademark after the joint partnership with GSK concluded in 1998. Pfizer retained the full U.S. rights to OTC Zantac until December 2006, when it transferred all assets pertaining to its Zantac OTC (including the rights to sell and market any formulation of OTC Zantac) to Boehringer Ingelheim.
- Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Boehringer Ingelheim USA Corporation: Purchased the rights for OTC Zantac in 2006. In 2016, Boehringer sold the OTC Zantac rights to Sanofi, though the company continued to manufacture the finished OTC Zantac product for Sanofi until October 2019.
- Sanofi US Services Inc., Sanofi-Aventis U.S. LLC: Purchased the rights of OTC Zantac in 2017 and manufactured and distributed the drug in the U.S. until recalling it in 2019.
Upcoming Schedule for Delaware Zantac Cases
In addition to naming the leadership for the plaintiffs in the Delaware Zantac litigation, Judge Medinilla also outlined the following schedule for general causation*:
May and June 2023: The process for selecting bellwether discovery plaintiffs begins.
July 17, 2023: Plaintiffs’ deadline to serve expert reports on the issue of general causation for the cancer types in the Delaware litigation.
September 18, 2023: Plaintiffs deadline to serve any rebuttal expert reports on the issue of general causation for the cancer types in the Delaware litigation.
October 25, 2023: Plaintiffs shall complete depositions of Defendants’ general causation experts.
November 1, 2023: Both parties shall file Daubert motions relating to general causation experts.
December 6, 2023: Both parties shall file oppositions to Daubert motions relating to general causation experts.
December 22, 2023: Both parties shall file reply briefs in support of their Daubert motions relating to general causation experts.
Daubert motions will take place between January 15 and January 31, 2024.
First Zantac Trial Begins in July
Wisner and colleague Jennifer Moore are preparing to co-try the first Zantac trial in the country, which will take place on July 24, 2023 in Oakland, California. The trial of James Goetz v. GlaxoSmithKline, LLC will take place in the same courtroom where Wisner previously won a $2 billion verdict in the Roundup litigation against Monsanto. The trial will be closely followed as the allegations in Mr. Goetz’s case share many similarities to cases filed in Delaware.
Wisner Baum Leading Zantac Cases in Multiple Venues
Individuals who developed cancer after taking Zantac (ranitidine) may still qualify for a claim. Over 10,000 people from across the nation have entrusted the Zantac cancer lawyers at Wisner Baum to represent their legal interests in cases against GSK and other defendants. We represent clients from every state in the nation. Managing partner R. Brent Wisner, who serves on the plaintiffs’ leadership in both California and Delaware, is poised to lead trials this year and next.
If you are interested in learning more about your legal rights in a Zantac lawsuit, please contact us or call our legal team. Zantac lawsuits are governed by state statutes of limitations, meaning your case has a time limit in which to file. To ensure your legal rights are protected, we highly encourage anyone who may have a claim to speak with an attorney as soon as possible.
Put your case in the hands of proven litigators with a longstanding track record of success against major corporations.
Contact our legal team today by calling (310) 207-3233 or submitting an online contact form today to schedule your 100% free case evaluation.
