Medical Malpractice Law & Strategy

There has been a lack of consistency in malpractice cases where the plaintiff has settled with one or more defendants, and then goes to trial against other defendants. However, a recently published New Jersey Law Division case has brought a measure of consistency to this issue.

As discussed in Part One of this article, New Jersey's Products Liability Act (Defective Product) (PLA), N.J. Stat. ' 2A:58C-5 (c) (2013), prevents injured plaintiffs seeking compensation from drug and device manufacturers from being awarded punitive damages. The statute, which in an earlier form was enacted in 2008, provides, in pertinent part:

Discussion of news and litigation.

Analysis of a recent notable ruling.

Recent news items of importance.

Conclusion of a discussion of the ways in which different jurisdictions treat "excess insurance" clauses ' those that describe an insurer's obligation when more than one insurance policy provides coverage to the same insured for the same loss.

In the case of the diagnosis of "obsessive compulsive disorder" (OCD), a misdiagnosis may send the patient down the wrong treatment path entirely.

The state of New Jersey is home to the headquarters of 17 of the top 20 drug-producing companies in the world. These include pharmaceuticals producers Wyeth, Merck and Co. and Johnson & Johnson.