Personal Injury Roundup No. 4 (8/22/2008)

We had our orientation at WNEC Law this week, and classes start in just a couple of days.  And me?  I've got my fantasy football draft on Saturday.  (And by the way, the commissioner is Christopher Harris of ESPN fantasy sports fame, and another player is Andy Behrens of Yahoo! fantasy sports.  It's kind of an intimidating crowd.)

Reform, Legislation, Policy

• NEJM editorial opposes preemption [AP/Yahoo; WSJ Health Blog; brief (PDF)]
• Illinois med-mal caps head to Illnois Supreme Court.   [Torts Prof]
• Apologies & Settlements [SSRN]
• Loser pays discussed.  A lot.  [New Talk]
• Public use of private lawyers.  [Sebok @ Writ]

New Lawsuits

• That Bigfoot story and carcass was a hoax?  We're shocked!  And we're suing.  [TortsProf]
• Congress would like some information about Vytorin's potential cancer link.  [ABC News]

Experts & Science

• Not just experts, but related: doctors & pharma ties. [CNN]
• "Science or politics" -- a landfill fight, right here in Paradise City [Valley Advocate]

Trials, Settlements & Other Ends

• The Station fire: last two major defendants (state & town) settle [TortsProf; Overlawyered]
• More preemption decisions & discussions [PharmExec, TortDeform (though they're discussing, as they note, a manufacturing case as to which preemption doesn't apply), Drug & Device Law (device scorecard)

Appeals

• Chicken-of-the-Sea individual action revived by Third Circuit.  [Court's opinion (pdf), Torts Prof, WSJ Blog, Drug & Device]   

Damages

• More on Mirapex [Overlawyered] (by the way, this case was heard by my judge -- Reagan appointee, who also just gave Medtronic a preemption win)

Goofy Stuff

• Kinda have to go with the Bigfoot story, don't I?  [TortsProf]

Shameless Self-Promotion (favorite posts of this week)

• Bill: Um, did I mention the Bigfoot story?  I can't tell you how much time I spent reading stuff about it.  No good reason, no history of interest, and yet there it is.  I assure you, if the case continues, it'll be wall-to-wall coverage.  [TortsProf] 

Thanks to:  Brooks Schuelke, Sam Charron

Not as much as usual, content-wise, but I've gotta get my cheat sheets put together for the draft.

--BC