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Bryant v. Hoffman La Roche Inc.

Once a prima facie case for design defect is established, a pharmaceutical manufacturer will be relieved from strict liability only when it demonstrates that 1 the product is properly manufactured and contains adequate warnings; 2 its benefits justify its risks; and 3 the product was at the time of manufacture and distribution incapable of being made more safe.

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Clyde C. Bryant filed suit against Hoffmann-La Roche, Inc., in his capacity as executor of the estate of his late wife, Carolyn Bryant, as well as on his own behalf. Hoffmann-La Roche is a pharmaceutical manufacturer, and Bryant’s suit arose out of his wife’s use of Posicor, one of the company’s products.1 Carolyn Bryant was being treated for cardiac problems, including hypertension and atrial fibrillation by Dr. Harold D. Carlson in 1997. In connection with that treatment, Carlson prescribed a number of medications for Mrs. Bryant, including Betapace, a beta blocking drug. On August 18, 1997, Dr. Carlson increased the Betapace dosage and on August 25, he prescribed Posicor, a heart medication manufactured by Hoffmann-La Roche that had recently been placed on the market. Posicor is a calcium channel blocker medication used to treat high blood pressure and angina. On August 26, 1997, Mrs. Bryant took the Betapace at approximately 7 a. m., and again at noon, and took Posicor for the first time at approximately 10 a.m. that day. That afternoon, her husband found her at the bottom of the stairs in her home and it was later determined that she had suffered severe brain injuries.

Bryant subsequently brought this suit asserting claims of negligence, breach of warranty, strict liability and loss of consortium against Hoffmann-La Roche and alleging that his wife’s injuries were linked directly to the use of Posicor and its interaction with Betapace. The trial court, without explanation, granted Hoffmann-La Roche’s motion for summary judgment as to all of Bryant’s claims, and Bryant appeals that ruling as well as the trial court’s order granting Hoffmann-La Roche’s motions in limine to exclude the testimony of his expert witnesses.

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