Abbott Labs Hit With $15M Verdict In Depakote Trial

An Illinois federal jury found that Abbott Labs failed to properly warn doctors about the risk of a severe birth defect in the babies of women taking its blockbuster drug Depakote awarding a 10-year-old boy born with spina bifida $15 million. His mother and prescribing physician were not aware that her risk of having a baby born with spina bifida or other major malformations was greater than 10 percent if she took Depakote. Raquel sued Abbott in 2015, claiming her doctors didn’t have all the necessary information when they put her on Depakote to treat her severe bipolar depression in the months before she became pregnant with Gonzalez. This case is the sixth suit over Depakote, an anti-epilepsy drug used to treat a number of different conditions, to go to trial.
There are hundreds of suits filed against Abbott by mothers and children who say they were not told of the true dangers to developing fetuses when they were given the medication. The bulk of them are consolidated in the Southern District of Illinois, where Judge Rosenstengel has explored both a bellwether and a batching method to deal with the claims. But attempts to reach a global settlement have failed, and Abbott has fought the wave of suits.

If you or a loved one took Depakote while pregnant and had a child with birth defects  contact Jamie Sheller Esq.  at Sheller PC for a FREE consultation at 1-800-883- 2299