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[NEW YORK, 30 January 2009] - A divided federal appeals court on Friday reinstated U.S. lawsuits against Pfizer Inc brought by Nigerian families who contend the drugmaker tested a dangerous antibiotic on their children without getting consent. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in New York, in a 2-1 ruling, overturned a lower court's finding that the cases, involving alleged harm caused by the drug Trovan, should be heard in Nigeria, not the United States. Pfizer conducted clinical trials of the drug in Nigeria during a 1996 meningitis epidemic. Families of some of the children who participated say the tests caused deaths and injuries. Pfizer has also been sued in Nigeria by that country's government in separate legal action related to the Trovan testing. That litigation was not covered by the appeals court's decision. In its ruling, the appeals court sent the U.S. cases back to a federal trial court for further consideration. The lower court had earlier dismissed the litigation. The appeals court said the plaintiffs could turn to the Alien Tort Statute, a more than 200-year-old law, as a basis for bringing their U.S. claims. Pfizer, based in New York, called the ruling "procedural" and said the decision did not address the merits of the cases. "Indeed, the strong dissent by one of the judges may be grounds for further appellate proceedings," the company said. It said it "remains confident that it will prevail in these cases, and is weighing its options on how to best respond to this decision." The drugmaker said the clinical study was conducted with the approval of the Nigerian government and had the consent of participants' parents or guardians. A lawyer for some of the Nigerian plaintiffs, Richard Altschuler, told Reuters the appeals court decision means his clients "now have a legal right to litigate this case in the federal court in the United States." But he said the matter is complicated, given that there is also the pending legal action against Pfizer filed by the Nigerian government. He said the best forum for the litigation will be "wherever justice will be served." Appeals court Judges Barrington Parker and Rosemary Pooler were in the majority in the ruling. Judge Richard Wesley dissented. "I conclude that non-consensual medical experimentation by private actors, though deplorable, is not actionable under international law," Wesley wrote.
Further information
pdf: http://in.reuters.com/article/governmentFilingsNews/idINN303730632009013...