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New Jersey Manufacturers and Punitive Damages

By Janice Inman
August 02, 2014

The state of New Jersey is home to the headquarters of 17 of the the top 20 drug-producing companies in the world. An incentive for pharmaceuticals manufacturers to move to or stay in New Jersey is surely its business-friendly laws. One such law has been at the center of several litigations nationwide, as New Jersey drug manufacturers try to export to other states the favorable treatment they receive in their home state. These other states' courts are not necessarily buying it.

New Jersey's Law

The New Jersey statute affecting punitive damages in drug and device tort litigations, known as the Products Liability Act (Defective Product) (PLA), N.J. Stat. ' 2A:58C-5 (c) (2013), provides, in pertinent part:

Punitive damages shall not be awarded if a drug or device … which caused the claimant's harm was subject to premarket approval or licensure by the federal Food and Drug Administration under the “Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act,” 52 Stat. 1040, 21 U.S.C. ' 301 et seq. or the “Public Health Service Act,” 58 Stat. 682, 42 U.S.C. ' 201 et seq. and was approved or licensed; or is generally recognized as safe and effective pursuant to conditions established by the federal Food and Drug Administration and applicable regulations, including packaging and labeling regulations. However, where the product manufacturer knowingly withheld or misrepresented information required to be submitted under the agency's regulations, which information was material and relevant to the harm in question, punitive damages may be awarded.

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