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Vioxx Product Liablity Plaintiffs Want Case In State Court, Seek Remand

September 9, 2005

The plaintiffs have moved to remand in the Vioxx MDL court, arguing that their consumer claims do not rise to the federal threshold in In Re: VIOXX Products Liability Litigation (MDL 1657), Mary Cooke et al. v. Merck & Co. Inc. (No. 05-1735, E.D. La.).

In their motion seeking remand to the 14th Judicial Circuit Court in Washington County, Fla., the plaintiffs say that Merck & Co. Inc. has failed to show that the plaintiffs' claims under the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act (FDUTPA) will meet the $75,000 threshold for federal jurisdiction and that the company's claim that the plaintiffs will seek to establish a medical monitoring program 'once the time period for removal has expired' is without basis in their complaint.

'For more than one hundred and fifty years, the United States Supreme Court has held steadfast to the rule that separate and distinct claims may not be aggregated in order to satisfy the amount in controversy requirement,' the plaintiffs say. 'There is no dispute that the Plaintiffs' Complaint contains no express claim to establish a 'medical monitoring program.' Essentially, it is the Defendant's argument that because the Plaintiffs might make such a claim at a later date, the Plaintiffs' Complaint must be construed as making such a claim. . . . [I]t is well established that any uncertainties about the nature or value of the Plaintiffs' claims are resolved against removal.'