Novartis is challenging a putative national class action relating to the drug, Zofran. Overlapping actions have been filed in four provinces--Ontario, Quebec, BC and Alberta. Zofran is an anti-nausea drug intended for cancer patients who are undergoing chemotherapy. The plaintiffs allege that Novartis (and the co-defendant, GlaxoSmithKline) promoted Zofran for treating nausea in pregnant women, but that Zofran can allegedly cause birth defects in infants if ingested by their mothers while pregnant (all of these allegations are firmly denied). This lawsuit is very significant given the sensational nature of these allegations.
Fasken advised Novartis with a team lead by Peter Pliszka and including Noah Boudreau, Robin Roddey, Caroline Youdan, Kim Potter.
