N.J. Court Accepts Wyeth Challenge to Late Opt-Outs by 40 Fen-Phen Plaintiffs

HACKENSACK, N.J. - A New Jersey trial judge presiding over that state's consolidated fen-phen docket has agreed with Wyeth's challenges to 40 of 47 intermediate or back-end opt outs from the global diet drug settlement and dismissed those cases. In re: Diet Drug Litigation. Master Docket No. BER-L-7718-03MT (N.J. Super., Bergen Cty.).

Wyeth challenged each opt-out on the basis of the plaintiff's qualifying echocardiogram, which, by the terms of the settlement, must show mild or greater regurgitation of the aortic valve and moderate or greater regurgitation of the mitral valve.

Wyeth relied on testimony from several expert cardiologists: Martin E. …