Claim Brought Under N.C. Unfair Practices Law Preempted by Buckman, Federal Judge Rules

GREENVILLE, N.C. — A claim brought under North Carolina’s unfair practices law by a plaintiff who says Anulex Technologies Inc. encouraged doctors to use its suture device “off-label” is federally preempted because it cannot exist in the absence of the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, a North Carolina federal judge has ruled.

On June 4, Judge Terrence W. Boyle of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina found the claim is impliedly preempted pursuant to Buckman Co. v. Plaintiffs' Legal Committee (531 U.S. 341, 348 [2001]), which states that there is no private right of action …