BOSTON -- Ortho Evra Litigation Begins in Massachusetts

Today, the first Massachusetts lawsuit alleging injury from the Ortho Evra Patch was filed in the U.S. District Court in Boston, by Michael R. Hugo of the Firm, Lopez, Hodes, Restaino, Milman & Skikos. The case is Poltrack v. Johnson & Johnson, et al USDC Civil Action No: 05 CA 12345, alleges that the plaintiff, a 25 year old woman, suffered a stroke while on the contraceptive patch.

On Nov. 10, 2005 the FDA announced that the popular Ortho Evra birth control patch can release up to 60 percent greater levels of estrogen than found in the pill. The medical community has known for decades that high levels of estrogen can cause blood clots, leading to serious medical conditions such as deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, stroke, heart attack and even death in young, healthy women. Because the product labeling for the Ortho Evra patch included claims that it was just as safe as the pill, the FDA required Johnson & Johnson to add a warning in November 2005 about the increased risk of injury due to high levels of estrogen released from the Ortho Evra patch.

Lopez, Hodes, Restaino, Milman & Skikos has been actively representing women seriously injured by blood clots caused by the Ortho Evra birth control patch for the past year, and in April of 2005 filed what is believed to be among the first of many cases we anticipate will be filed in the country against the makers of the Ortho Evra patch. As a result of this early filing, Lopez Hodes has taken a leading role in developing the case against Johnson & Johnson and its Ortho-McNeil subsidiary. Lopez Hodes has already had several status conferences in the United States District Court in the Northern District of Ohio, before the Honorable Judge Katz. A protective order has been entered, discovery responses provided, and nearly two million pages of documents have been produced to Lopez Hodes. The Defendant has agreed to consolidate discovery in other Lopez Hodes cases with the lead case in Ohio.

Last week, Lopez Hodes filed a wrongful death action on behalf of a family in Wisconsin, who lost their 14 year old daughter due to pulmonary emboli caused by the Ortho Evra patch. Lopez Hodes has several other cases filed on behalf of women who have suffered serious personal injury due to use of the Ortho Evra patch, including recent filings in California and now Massachusetts.