By Buck Daniel –
In the most recent legal defeat for Johnson & Johnson, the South Carolina Supreme Court affirmed a verdict against J & J under the Attorney General’s Unfair Trade Practices Act for “willfully failing to disclose known risks and side effects associated with Risperdal.” Though the original award of $256 million was reduced by the South Carolina Supreme Court award to $136 million, the amount still marks a devastating blow to Johnson & Johnson’s legal team in their legal battle.
In one of the largest health-care fraud lawsuits in U.S. history, J & J paid $2.2 billion in November 2013 to settle a Risperdal lawsuit brought by the United States Department of Justice. The settlement included civil recoveries of $1.72 billion under the federal False Claims Act and criminal penalties and forfeitures totaling $485 million. These amounts were not recovered on behalf of injured plaintiffs, but affirmed the type of fraud in these cases.
