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Texas Vioxx Trial – Jury Awards $253 Million

The jury in the nation’s first Vioxx lawsuit, in Angleton, Texas, returned a verdict of $253.4 million in damages against the defendant, Merck, Inc.

Texas has arbitrary caps on damages, and the plaintiff widow will not receive this much money, even if the case is upheld on appeal, but this is a great victory for the plaintiff against the manufacturer of a dangerous drug.

The jury awarded $450,000 in economic damages for the projected lost earnings of the deceased, $24 million for mental anguish and loss of companionship, and $229 million in punitive damages.

Under Texas law, as applied to this particular case, punitive damages are arbitrarily capped at two times the amount of economic damages, plus $750,000. Therefore the widow was actually awarded $1.65 million, in addition to the $24 million in mental anguish. Texas appellate courts are notorious for reducing the amounts of jury awards, so even though the jury awarded $253.4 million, it’s possible the widow will end up with less than 10% of that amount. Plus, there is always the possibility that an appellate court will overturn the verdict entirely.

Bob Kraft

I am a Dallas, Texas lawyer who has had the privilege of helping thousands of clients since 1971 in the areas of Personal Injury law and Social Security Disability.

About This Blog

The title of this blog reflects my attitude toward those government agencies and insurance companies that routinely mistreat injured or disabled people. As a Dallas, Texas lawyer, I've spent more than 45 years trying to help those poor folk, and I have been frustrated daily by the actions of the people on the other side of their claims. (Sorry if I offended you...)

If you find this type of information interesting or helpful, please visit my law firm's main website at KraftLaw.com. You will find many more articles and links. Thank you for your time.

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