Hundreds of plaintiffs' lawyers who claim that people were injured or killed by the

Hundreds of plaintiffs' lawyers who claim that people were injured or killed by the painkiller Vioxx plan to meet next week to lay the groundwork for a nationwide legal assault against the drug's maker, Merck.

Surveying the wreckage of the worst pharmaceutical tort litigations of the past, investors naturally want to know: Will Vioxx be the next Baycol, or Rezulin, or fen-phen? Our prediction is: yes, but bigger.

Merck's press conference was very disappointing, according to Andy Birchfield, "Instead of accepting responsibility for putting a dangerous drug on the market and keeping it there for so long, Merck spent an hour defending itself."

Lawsuits. Lawsuits. Lawsuits. And they're coming fast. The recall came after testing revealed the risk of heart attack or stroke doubled for those taking Vioxx.

The plaintiffs bar was heartened when pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co. stopped sales of Vioxx, a popular arthritis drug that relieves aches and pains, but increases the risk of heart attacks and strokes.

A new FDA study found patients taking a high dose of Vioxx were three times more likely to have a heart attack. As a result, Merck & Co. is pulling the arthritis drug from the market.