Glaxo ordered to pay $3 million over a generic Paxil suicide
GlaxoSmithKline was ordered to pay $3 million to the widow of an attorney who committed suicide after taking a generic version of its Paxil antidepressant, because the federal court jury decided the drug maker failed to properly warn about the risk of its medicine.
The five-week trial was closely watched because it turned on a contentious issue — whether consumers can successfully sue a brand-name drug maker if they suffered harm after taking a pill made by a generic rival. In this instance, Stewart Dolin, 57, had taken a generic version of Paxil that was sold by Mylan Pharmaceuticals, which was also named when the lawsuit was originally filed, but was later dismissed.
