Each year in the United States, nearly 1.5 million people sustain a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). Causes vary from falls to traffic crashes and physical assaults. Additionally, a large number of military personnel who return from active war zones, such as the war in Iraq, suffer from TBIs.

On March 4, 2009, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 on the side of the consumer in a landmark pharmaceutical liability case against drug manufacturer Wyeth. The ruling may be the death knell in the argument for preemption – an effort to protect corporations from state tort litigation.

MONTGOMERY, ALA. - (February 24, 2009) A jury in Montgomery County Circuit Court returned a verdict in favor of the State of Alabama today, finding drug manufacturer Sandoz Pharmaceuticals, Inc., guilty of defrauding the Medicaid system. The jury ordered the company to pay $78.4 million, including $28.4 million in compensatory damages and $50 million in punitive damages. The verdict is significant because German-based Sandoz, a subsidiary of Novartis, manufactures and markets generic drugs.

ETHEX Corporation has expanded two previous voluntary recalls initially issued in 2008 to include more than 60 generic drug products at either the wholesale level or retail level as a safety precaution. The generic products may have been manufactured under conditions that “did not sufficiently comply with current Good Manufacturing Practices,” according to a press release issued by the FDA.

According to the Food and Drug Administration, more than 500 people in 43 states and Canada have been sickened by an outbreak of Salmonella Typhimurium, which has been traced to products containing contaminated peanut butter originating from the Peanut Corporation of America (PCA). Authorities also believe the contaminated peanut butter has lead to about 100 hospitalizations and is linked to eight deaths.

Although she will never benefit from the new legislation expected to be signed into law tomorrow by President Barack Obama, Lilly Ledbetter of Jacksonville, Ala., is proud of the difference she's making in the lives of other hard working folks. The Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which is the first significant legislation passed by the new Congress, will change the law regarding eligibility in filing for wage discrimination.

Beasley Allen is currently reviewing Tremont Investment claims on behalf of institutional investors. These cases involve alleged securities fraud and include as defendants Tremont Group Holdings, Inc.; Tremont Partners, Inc.; Rye Investment Management, Oppenheimer Acquisition Corporation, Oppenheimer Funds, Inc.; Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company, and KPMG, L.L.P.

Beasley Allen attorneys Rhon Jones and David Byrne are fighting to make a difference in the lives of those threatened by environmental toxins that contaminate waterways, soil and wildlife, endangering human health and life. These are often difficult and complex cases because of the variety of scientific and technical issues involved, and because of the many people whose lives are affected by environmental hazards.

Beasley Allen, along with Dagney Johnson-Walker, a Birmingham lawyer filed suit in November on behalf of the City of Birmingham against various sub-prime lenders including Wells Fargo, Regions Bank and Countrywide. The suit contends that the companies have violated the Fair Housing Act (FHA) by participating in predatory lending practices. The lawsuit also alleges the lenders violated other state laws and have profited by their wrongdoing.

After a period of heavy rain, on Dec. 22 an earthen dike at a coal-fired electric plant failed, releasing thousands of pounds of ash and other plant byproducts, flooding more than 300 acres in East Tennessee. According to a story in the New York Times, the plant produced more than 2.2 million pounds of toxic materials each year. It is estimated that more than a billion gallons of coal fly ash was spilled. This is one of the largest spills of its kind in the United States, and poses an environmental disaster.