Pfizer Awarded Summary Judgment in W. Va. Zoloft Birth Defect Action

CHARLESTON, W. Va. — A West Virginia judge has awarded Pfizer Inc. summary judgment in a Zoloft birth defect action, finding the plaintiffs failed to present evidence that Pfizer intentionally withheld required information concerning the drug from the Food and Drug Administration.

On Aug. 30, Judge James Mazzone of the Kanawha County (W. Va.) Circuit Court concluded that plaintiffs did not create a triable issue of fact concerning the “fraud-on-the-FDA” exception to Michigan’s ban on product liability actions involving FDA-approved drugs.

The judge further held that even if the plaintiffs established a question of fact, such fraud-on-the-FDA claims are …