Defendant Denied Access to Social Worker Records in Lexapro Case

NEW YORK - A drug maker blamed for the suicide of a New York man cannot access records from the widow's visit to a social worker to determine whether marital or financial trouble may have precipitated her husband's death, a trial court judge has ruled. Keith v. Forest Laboratories Inc., No. 105272/05 (N.Y. Sup. Ct., New York Cty.).

In a May 12 order, New York County Supreme Court Justice Helen E. Freedman granted the widow's protective order, preventing defendant Forest Laboratories from obtaining the records. Forest Labs claimed the information would shed light on apparent inconsistencies between deposition testimony and …