Jurors Send A Message To Merck With An Outlandish $250mm Award on Vioxx Trial....

Jurors in the Vioxx trial found the Pharmaceutical company, Merck, guilty on all counts in the suit over a users death.

Ten of the dozen jurors thought that number would best send a message to Merck & Co., the makers of Vioxx, when issuing punitive damages Friday.

The 10 of the 12 jurors decided to send a "message" to Merck and the other Pharmaceutical companies by awarding this outlandish amount that will be reduced or eliminated on appeal.

The verdict is not just punitive, but destructive. Pharmaceutical companies, particularly those in the United States, spend billions on research to solve vexing health problems facing not just Americans but others around the globe. Merck funds one of the largest basic research programs on human health on the planet and this money comes from the profits that they earn on their drug selling business. Without profits, basic research budgets get cut or eliminated and we will then have to rely upon government to fund a dumbed down research effort into politicians pet projects and vote getting specialties.

So, exactly what message does the jury want to send? According to one juror, they wanted Merck to know that they are human. By the way, Merck knows that they are human more than any other entity on the planet. They know the in-and-outs of being human through their basic research. And with an outlandish jury award of $250mm, what does this say about the concept of responsible juries? Should all juries be sending messages? Maybe juries should be sending messages to all forms of criminal activity. Maybe the death penalty or other forms of cruel punishment as found in Islamic Sharia [look at this link!!!] law would be appropriate for even petty crimes if it "sends a message." I really don't want some boneheaded jury sending me a message one day.

The Texas courts are famous for their outlandishly large jury awards. Mark Lanier, the plaintiffs attorney on this case, is well know for receiving large punitive damages on behalf of his clients.

The Houston trial lawyer has scored big here several times, never more dramatically than in 1998. He arrived with 21 Alabama steelworkers who had been injured by exposure to an asbestos-laden grinding wheel. He left with a $115 million damage award, one of the largest ever given in an asbestos case.

The asbestos liability cases that buried many companies over the last decade, are a fine example of how to destroy American industry and drive it offshore. If the US wants to compete on a global stage, we have to reduce the headwinds that competitors do not face overseas.

My feeling is that legal liability in the US will hurt our long-term competitiveness and promises to offer nothing but mediocrity in return. Of course attorneys love the system since it offers them a system to get extraordinarily wealthy while adding little of value to society or the world at large.