Federal Judge Vacates $51 Million Vioxx Award, Orders New Trial

NEW ORLEANS - A jury award of $50 million to compensate a retired FBI agent for a non-fatal heart attack he suffered after taking Vioxx for 31 months was 'grossly excessive' and a new trial on the issue of damages must be held, a federal judge ruled. In Re: Vioxx Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 1657 (E.D. La.).

On Aug. 30, Judge Eldon E. Fallon of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana said that '[n]o reasonable jury could have found that [plaintiff Gerald D. Barnett] was entitled to $50 million in compensatory damages' from Merck & …