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Johnson & Johnson has scored a victory in the Levaquin litigation it has been fighting.  A United States Court of Appeals ruled for the drug giant, reversing a $1.1 million punitive award that a jury had awarded to plaintiff John Schedin.

The Court of Appeals states that there was no evidence that Johnson & Johnson deliberately disregarded the safety of Levaquin users.  They left a compensatory award of $630,000 intact.

Johnson & Johnson has faced more than 3,400 state and federal lawsuits alleging that the use of the antibiotic Levaquin led to severe tendon damage and rupture in many patients.  Last month J&J settled over 800 cases.  Of the four cases that have gone to trial, J&J has won three of them, and the fourth that was lost is the Schedin case.

In 2008, the FDA added a black box warning to Levaquin, the most serious type of warning a drug can carry.  The lawsuits against Levaquin allege that patients taking the drug face an increased risk of tendon rupture, damage, and tendonitis, which can leave patients permanently disabled.

Source:

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-11-30/j-j-wins-reversal-of-1-1-million-levaquin-punitive-award.html