U.S. District Judge Refuses to Move Hair-Loss Suits Forward, Law360 Reports

Law360 reported, “Clock Has Run Out for Hair-Loss Patients in Chemo MDL,” noting a Louisiana federal judge’s refusal to revive two lawsuits of plaintiffs who filed too late under Louisiana law.

Shook attorneys representing Sanofi used Louisiana’s “Prescription Law” in their request for summary judgment, which was filed in January 2019. The law requires product liability suits be filed within a year after a six-month mark for symptoms. The judge ruled on the lawsuits January 23. 

In a separate case in late 2019, Shook won an important defense verdict for Sanofi when a Louisiana jury returned a verdict within two hours in the first bellwether trial in multidistrict litigation involving allegations that the breast cancer chemotherapy drug Taxotere causes permanent hair loss. 

The cases are Francis v. Sanofi, No. 16-cv-17410 and Johnson v. Sanofi, No. 2:16-cv-15607, both (E.D. La.).

Law360 and Bloomberg have covered many of Shook’s successful results in the Sanofi Taxotere litigation. Shook Partners Harley Ratliff, Jon Strongman and Adrienne Byard represent Sanofi.