Warning, Warranty Claims Dismissed in La. Federal Ventricular Assist Device Case

BATON ROUGE, La. — A Louisiana federal judge has dismissed without prejudice claims for failure to warn and breach of express warranty in a case involving Abbott Laboratories Inc.’s ventricular assist device, ruling they are inadequately pled.

However, in a Sept. 24 order, Chief Judge Shelly Dick of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana held that plaintiffs’ mismanufacture claim is not preempted because it alleges violations of state law that parallel federal regulations. The judge allowed the plaintiffs to replead their dismissed claims.

In 2012, William McKenzie had a severe viral infection in his heart …