Plaintiffs Want Employee Depositions Postponed Pending Privilege Rulings

NEW ORLEANS - Plaintiffs in the federal Vioxx MDL have moved for a protective order preventing Merck & Co. Inc. from taking de bene esse depositions of several employee fact witnesses until the court has completed its review of privileged documents, saying "premature" depositions would prejudice the PSC's preparation of a trial package. In Re: Vioxx Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 1657 (E.D. La.).

In a March 30 motion filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, the PSC says that to properly prepare the trial package that is to be used for both federal and …