Accutane Lawsuits

Since 2001, Hoffmann-La Roche, the maker of the acne medication Accutane, has been beset with lawsuits by Accutane users and their families who claim that the drug causes unwarranted psychiatric effects ranging from depression to suicide. Warnings that Accutane is linked to depression have been part of the drug's product label since 1985 and have gradually been strengthened over the last decade to include its potential link to suicide and other psychiatric problems.

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Roche won the first Accutane lawsuit after an Oklahoma jury agreed with the pharmaceutical company's contention that scientific evidence proving a direct causal link between Accutane and psychiatric disorders was lacking. The suit was filed by 38 year-old Carla Gray, who alleged that she became severely depressed after using Accutane for several years. She claimed the psychological effects of the drug eventually destroyed her marriage. After hearing allegations from United States. Representative Bart Stupak (D-Mich.) that his son's suicide was due in part to depression induced by Accutane, Gray stopped using the drug. She then filed a $3 million product liability action against Roche, claiming that the pharmaceutical company failed to warn physicians and acne sufferers of the psychiatric dangers associated with Accutane.

Roche's victory with the first Accutane lawsuit has not stopped other Accutane actions from being filed. In April 2002, the mother of Charles Bisphop - a 15-year-old boy who killed himself by crashing a single-engine plane into a Florida skyscraper - filed suit against Roche claiming that Accutane caused her son to commit suicide. The lawsuit claims that Roche manufactured a defective product and that the company disregarded a company doctor's recommendation that users of the drug be monitored for signs of depression and that a warning to that effect be added to the drug's label. The lawsuit further asserts that Roche omitted the warning after its marketing officials argued that such an alert could cost the company sales or prompt lawsuits.

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Shortly thereafter, parents of a 14 year-old filed a wrongful-death suit against Roche in California after their son committed suicide by throwing himself in front of a train after undergoing a six-month course of treatment with Accutane. The child's parents alleged that the child's suicide was caused by Accutane's side effects.

A lawsuit filed in Essex County Superior Court in New Jersey also alleges that Roche failed to adequately warn its users that it could cause serious psychiatric side effects. In at least two cases, the lawsuit claima, Accutane was to blame for the death of a 19 year-old man and the emotional downfall of a 16-year-old New Jersey girl.

"The defendants knew from the onset of the marketing of Accutane/Roaccutane that numerous adverse drug reaction reports were provided, indicating that some persons were experiencing severe depression while utilizing Accutane/Roaccutane, and some patients were actually committing suicide as a result thereof," the complaint states. According to the lawsuit, Roaccutane, the French version of Accutane, was brought into question in 1997, when the FDA's French counterpart warned French users that the drug is linked to suicidal ideation and suicide attempts, and required Hoffman La Roche to provide the same warning on Roaccutane's product label. "The defendants, Roche, knew after a study conducted by French officials in 1992 through 1994 that a high incidence of suicide among patients using Accutane as compared to other acne medications was a sufficient basis for the country of France to order Roche to strengthen its warnings to include suicide as a possible side effect," the complaint contends. The complaint further alleges that Roche, in turn, was negligent in failing to report the French warnings to the FDA for fear that the agency would require new investigations of Accutane and require that the drug's U.S. labels include stronger psychiatric warnings. The plaintiffs argue that Roche failed to disclose findings linking Accutane to suicide for fear of economic repercussions that might have followed such a label change.

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Parents of Nathan S. Day, a Virginia man who hanged himself at the age of 20, more than two years after he stopped taking Accutane in 1999, also filed a lawsuit against Roche blaming the pharmaceutical company for failing to disclose the possibility that Accutane may induce suicidal behavior. In the lawsuit, Day's parents assert, "explicit warnings of Accutane's risk of depression and suicide came 16 years after the product's introduction. Roche failed to do the research or ignored existing information that would have caused it to warn of these side effects earlier, and it was only from the outside pressure of the FDA that warnings were attached." The complaint continues on to allege that while warnings were being strengthened, Roche "undermined the danger by issuing confusing and conflicting information."

Overall, many of the complaints are based on legal theories of negligent failure to warn, breach of implied warranty, and defective design. Some also seek punitive damages against Roche.

If you or a family member have experienced severe side-effects while using Accutane and you would like to discuss your rights with a professional, please fill out this short form and an experienced member of Seeger Weiss's staff will contact you. Initial consultations involve no fee on your part and do not create a legal relationship. Seeger Weiss LLP has offices located in New York and New Jersey and its attorneys are available to practice throughout the country.