Eleventh Circuit Affirms Dismissal of Accutane Lawsuit
On June 10, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a district court's granting of summary judgment in favor of Hoffman-La Roche, Inc., the manufacturer of the drug Accutane. The case involved the tragic death of the son of U.S. Rep. Bart Stupak (D-Mich), who was 17 years old when he took his own life. Laurie Stupak sued Hoffman-La Roche, Inc. alleging the manufacturer was negligent in failing to warn that Accutane (an acne drug) could cause suicide without any premonitory (warning) symptoms.
The package of Accutane that B.J. Stupak was taking did not warn of a risk of suicide without any warning symptoms. The court ruled, however, that because Hoffman-La Roche, Inc. did not know at the time that patients using Accutane could experience a desire to kill themselves without any warning signs, the drug manufacturer could not be held liable.
