Sanders Firm - Tuesday, August 05, 2008 - Lexis Nexis Press Release

New York-Based Sanders Law Firm Files Five Product Liability Lawsuits Against Pfizer on Behalf of Chantix Plaintiffs

Leading injury law firm representing families of individuals who suffered from suicidal thoughts and erratic behavior while taking popular smoking cessation drug.

Mineola, N.Y. (Lexis Nexis) August 5, 2008 - Marc Grossman, a senior partner of leading national personal injury law firm Sanders Viener Grossman LLP, today announced that he has filed five separate product liability lawsuits against Pfizer, Inc., manufacturer of the hugely popular Chantix smoking cessation drug.

The lawsuits (Cases 110517/08, 110518/08, 110519/08, 110520/08 and 110561/08) were filed in the Supreme Court of New York, New York County, and claim that each of the plaintiffs either committed or attempted suicide while suffering from neuropsychiatric side effects that resulted from taking Chantix.

Chantix has been prescribed to more than 6 million people worldwide since its launch in August 2006 and has been approved for use in more than 70 countries as a drug to assist adults who want to quit smoking. However, recent studies have shown that Chantix may cause serious adverse side effects, such as suicidal thoughts and erratic behavior.

Earlier this year, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued an alert "to highlight important revisions to the warnings and precautions sections of the prescribing information for Chantix regarding serious neuropsychiatric symptoms."

"We've been investigating claims regarding Chantix ever since the FDA's initial communications about reported side effects, so our firm was well-prepared to vigorously represent our clients when we were contacted by their families," said Grossman. "For those familiar with this year's Tony Award-winning play, 'August: Osage County,' which has sparked debate about the risks of suicide and dysfunction stemming from prescription drug use, the fact that we are filing these actions on the eve of August 1st is a tragic illustration of life imitating art."

The filing of the Chantix lawsuits continues an extremely active year for Sanders Viener Grossman, in which the firm has secured a series of large settlements on behalf of its clients. The firm recently recovered large settlements for approximately 300 plaintiffs involved in the Vioxx-related litigation with Merck & Co. Last month, Sanders Viener Grossman recovered $8 million in damages for its clients over a span of just eight days, including a $5 million recovery in a product liability case.

According to Grossman, the firm has extensive experience with defective drug litigation and can provide Chantix victims with free consultations and case reviews to make sure their legal rights are protected. In addition to Chantix litigation The Sanders Firm is also currently investigating claims for Composix Kugel Mesh Patch, Shoulder Pain Pumps, Fosamax, Digitek, Avandia and OxyContin.