Summary Judgment Awarded to Merck in Vioxx Wrongful Death Suit Upheld on Appeal

DAYTON, Ohio - An Ohio appellate court upheld a trial court's ruling that awarded summary judgment to Merck in a Vioxx-related wrongful death suit after granting the drug maker's motion to strike the affidavit of the plaintiff's expert and finding that the plaintiff could not pursue failure to warn and defective design claims under Ohio's learned intermediary doctrine. Jon Kennedy v. Merck & Co., Inc., Case No. 19591 (Ohio Ct. Appeals, Montgomery Cty.).

The appellate court found that the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas judge did not err in ruling that Merck provided adequate warnings to the prescribing …