Carlene Rhodes Lewis (1954-2006): A 'Pioneer' in Vioxx Litigation

HOUSTON - Carlene Rhodes Lewis, a co-founder of the law firm Goforth Lewis Sanford in Houston and a member of the legal team that won a $253.4 million jury award against Merck & Co. Inc. in the first-ever Vioxx trial, died June 5 of complications relating to ovarian cancer. She was 51.

Lewis was an influential trial lawyer widely known to have helped initiate the Vioxx litigation against Merck. According to published reports, her interest in Vioxx began about six years ago when a friend of her mother's began experiencing unexplained high blood pressure and heart problems, and Lewis found …