MDL Judge Declines to Restrict Testimony to Case-Specific Evidence

NEW ORLEANS - Merck & Co. Inc.'s Vioxx marketing and promotional materials unrelated to a Utah plaintiff or his prescribers will be permitted as evidence in the fourth scheduled federal MDL trial, the judge overseeing the case said in ruling on the parties' pre-trial motions. In Re: Vioxx Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 1657 (E.D. La.).

Judge Eldon E. Fallon of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana issued the order Oct. 16 in the case of Mason v. Merck & Co. Inc., No. 06-810, which is scheduled to go to trial Oct. 30 in New Orleans.