SV40 Claims Can't Continue Without Manufacturer Identification

HACKENSACK, N.J. - A New Jersey court has awarded summary judgment to corporate defendants in two cases relating to a simian virus-contaminated polio vaccine that allegedly caused plaintiffs' injuries, finding that the plaintiffs failed to identify the manufacturer of the vaccine. Funk, et al. v. Aventis, et al., No. BER-L-725-04; Johnston, et al. v. Aventis, et al., No. BER-L-8744-03 (N.J. Super. Ct., Bergen Cty.).

In a March 9 opinion, Judge Richard J. Donohue of the Bergen County Superior Court said the only evidence offered by the plaintiffs is newspaper articles from the early 1960s regarding polio immunization campaigns, a vaccination …