Two of the cases our firm has in the New Jersey Yaz (and Yasmin, Ocella) litigation have been chosen to more forward as bellwether cases. Bellwether cases are lead cases, which stand in for all of the cases. They are fully prepared for trial by the lawfirm who represents the client, and the trial judge selects one of them for the first trial. The outcome of these early cases therefore have a major impact on the whole litigation.
The first of our two cases involved the tragic death of a 22 year old woman due to a pulmonary embolism, Neely vs. Bayer. She was found dead in her apartment in Texas, after taking Yaz for several months. The clot was so large that it totallty blocked oxygenated blood from getting to her heart and brain. Her mother is the plaintiff bringing the suit and she was questioned recently by the lawyers for the manufacturer on all issues, including the grief the family experienced due Neely’s death.
The second case involved a New York woman who had to have her gallbladder removed due to severe complaints of nausea and pain.
We hope that the pressure that is brought to bear by bringing these cases up to trial, along with many others that are bellwether cases in New Jersey, California and the federal litigation in Illinois, will pressure the Bayer company into accepting responsibility for their improper conduct in marketing this dangerous product.
