Merck: Plaintiffs' Discovery, Tolling Arguments Can't Save Vioxx Claims

NEW ORLEANS - Merck & Co. Inc. has argued in support of its motion for summary judgment in three federal Vioxx MDL cases that the plaintiffs' claims are time-barred regardless of whether the court applies Louisiana prescription law or the law of the plaintiffs' respective home states. In Re: Vioxx Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 1657 (E.D La.).

In a Jan. 19 reply brief filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, Merck says that the Plaintiffs' Steering Committee's recent memorandum opposing Merck's motion errs in claiming that the plaintiffs' claims are timely because the plaintiffs …