Breach of Implied Warranty, Design Defect Claims to Proceed in HRT Case

CHARLESTON, W.Va. - A West Virginia federal judge has denied drug makers summary judgment on claims of breach of the implied warranty of merchantability and design defect in a case in which a woman claims that hormone replacement treatment drugs caused her to develop breast cancer. Hines v. Wyeth, No. 04-690 (S.D. W.Va.).

On May 23, Judge John T. Copenhaver Jr. of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia ruled that issues of fact exist as to as to the adequacy of defendants' drug labeling and whether use of a natural progestin would have avoided plaintiff's …