Pain Patch Wrongful Death Suit is Time-Barred, Judge Rules

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - A wrongful death action brought against the makers of a transdermal pain patch is untimely under Tennessee's one-year statute of repose, a federal judge has ruled. McMillan, et al., v. Janssen Pharmaceutica Inc., et al., No. 10-194 (E.D. Tenn.).

On Jan. 4, Judge Thomas A. Varlan of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee ruled that the plaintiffs were required to file suit by June 2008, nearly two years before their complaint was filed.

In May 2010, John D. McMillan, John D. Pickett and Jennifer D. McMillan sued AZLA Corp. and Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc. …