Consumer Protection Claims Asserted in Zoloft Efficacy Action Time-Barred, 9th Cir. Affirms

SAN FRANCISCO — Claims that Pfizer Inc. misrepresented the efficacy of its antidepressant Zoloft are time-barred under California law because the plaintiff was on inquiry notice by June 2008, yet waited until 2013 to file suit, a federal appeals court has ruled.

On Nov. 9, the 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals further held that the discovery rule did not toll the applicable statutes of limitations because the plaintiff failed to allege any facts that she was unable to discover the factual bases of her claims earlier despite exercising reasonable diligence.

Laura Plumlee was prescribed Zoloft in March 2005 to …