| Protective Orders in Drug Product Liability Litigation |
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| After a drug product liability lawsuit is filed, both the plaintiff (the person suing) and the defendant (the person or company being sued) engage in a process called discovery. The purpose of discovery is to allow a party to learn more about the important facts of the case before trial and the other party's evidence. The scope of discovery is very broad. It covers any information that is relevant to the case or which may lead to relevant evidence. Privileged information and the work product of the opposing party's lawyer (the lawyer's written observations, theories, opinions, and research) do not have to be disclosed. Privileged information includes oral and written communications between an attorney and his/her client. More... |
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| Pharmacists' Defenses to Negligence Lawsuits |
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| Pharmacists have a duty to store, prepare, and dispense prescription drugs properly. If the dispensing pharmacist fails to perform any of these duties, the patient could have a claim against the pharmacist. If the pharmacist's actions caused the injuries, he/she could be held liable for the patient's drug-related injuries. This article examines the defenses that are available to a pharmacist if a patient files a negligence lawsuit against the dispensing pharmacist. More... |
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| Food Quality |
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| In 1996, Congress passed landmark food safety legislation called the Food Quality Protection Act (FQPA). The goal of the FQPA is to protect the public from harmful pesticide residues. Under prior law, the EPA established "tolerances" (maximum legal levels) for pesticide chemical residues in food. The FQPA considers pesticide tolerances as "safe" when there is a reasonable certainty that no harm will result from cumulative exposure to pesticide residues. These tolerances are based on a risk assessment that includes all anticipated dietary exposures and all other exposures for which there is reliable information. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) enforces tolerances for most foods. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Services enforces tolerances for meat, poultry, and some egg products. More... |
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| Household Refrigerator Safety Act |
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| The headlines are too familiar and too tragic: "Children, 4 and 7, Found in Old Refrigerator, Dead From Suffocation." The Household Refrigerator Safety Act (Act) was passed to prevent children from becoming trapped inside refrigerators and suffocating to death. More... |
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| Ultrahazardous Activity Doctrine |
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| The ultrahazardous activity doctrine imposes strict liability for damage proximately caused by one who carries on an "ultrahazardous" or "abnormally dangerous" activity. This means that even if the person performing the ultrahazardous or abnormally dangerous activity uses the utmost case, that person will still be held liable for any resulting damage.More... |
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