by brettb on August 10, 2010
As reported by Bloomberg News, the the drugmaker AstraZeneca Plc will settle approximately 17,500 personal injury and/or product liability lawsuits for about $198 million involving their antipsychotic drug Seroquel, which causes diabetes in some patients.
The settlements came out of a court ordered mediation and put drug makers one step closer to resolving the 26,000 total Seroquel cases believed to exist.
According to financial media reports, the markets will view this settlement favorably as it is lower than some estimates for the potential liability and because it removes the uncertainty of having all those claims pending against the U.K.’s second largest drugmaker.
by brettb on July 27, 2010
As reported by USA Today, Nissan has announced that it is recalling its popular Cube hatchback due to the possibility of fuel spilling during a rear-end collision. If such a collision were to take place the leakage of gasoline could cause a fire and potentially serious personal injuries.
According to NHTSA, federal tests indicated that the Cube spilled more fuel during a rear-end collision than federal safety standards allowed. The tests were conducted by simulating rear end crashes taking place at 50 miles per hour. Nissan issues a statement saying that its own tests were at odds with NHTSA’s, however, it was issuing the recall out of safety concerns for consumers.
The recall will impact Cube model years 2009 and 2010 made between Jan. 30, 2009 and July 30. The recall only effects cars sold in the United States and Canada. Vehicles sold in Europe and Japan are not involved in the recall because they use different parts, according to Nissan.
