Fla. Judge Quashes Subpoenas for Testimony at Scheduled Zometa Trial

ORLANDO, Fla. — A Florida federal judge has quashed subpoenas for testimony of two Novartis Pharmaceutical Corp. (NYSE: NVS) employees at a scheduled Zometa trial, ruling that service was improper because the employees live and work more than 100 miles from the courthouse.

In an Aug. 16 order, Judge Gregory A. Presnell of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida noted that Federal Rule of Procedure 45(c) requires courts to quash or modify a subpoena that "requires a person who is neither a party nor a party's officer to travel more than 100 miles from where that …