James Hurst of Kirkland & Ellis, left, and Phyllis Jones of Covington & Burling, right. Courtesy photos Litigators of the Week: After Two Big Wins for Plaintiffs, a Defense Verdict for Infant Formula Makers
Juries hit Mead Johnson and Abbott Laboratories with verdicts of $60 million and $495 million respectively earlier this year in cases linking an intestinal disease with formula given to premature babies in hospitals. Covington's Phyllis Jones and Kirkland's Jim Hurst led teams that secured a defense verdict for the companies in Missouri state court last week.
November 08, 2024 at 07:30 AM
11 minute read
Earlier this year, Mead Johnson was hit with a $60 million verdict and Abbott Laboratories with an even larger $495 million verdict in trials linking the milk-based infant formula the companies make with necrotizing enterocolitis, or NEC—a life-threatening intestinal disease that affects premature infants.
This week, in a third trial bringing similar claims against both companies, a lawyer for the plaintiff asked state court jurors in St. Louis, Missouri, for $6.2 billion in punitive damages in closing arguments. But, after four hours of deliberations last week, jurors returned a complete defense verdict for the companies.
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Rebecca Maller-Stein and Kent A. Yalowitz of Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer have entered their appearances for Hanaco Venture Capital and its executives, Lior Prosor and David Frankel, in a pending securities lawsuit. The action, filed on Dec. 24 in New York Southern District Court by Zell, Aron & Co. on behalf of Goldeneye Advisors, accuses the defendants of negligently and fraudulently managing the plaintiff's $1 million investment. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Vernon S. Broderick, is 1:24-cv-09918, Goldeneye Advisors, LLC v. Hanaco Venture Capital, Ltd. et al.
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Attorneys from A&O Shearman has stepped in as defense counsel for Toronto-Dominion Bank and other defendants in a pending securities class action. The suit, filed Dec. 11 in New York Southern District Court by Bleichmar Fonti & Auld, accuses the defendants of concealing the bank's 'pervasive' deficiencies in regards to its compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act and the quality of its anti-money laundering controls. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian, is 1:24-cv-09445, Gonzalez v. The Toronto-Dominion Bank et al.
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