Pa. Appellate Court Upholds $76.6 Million Verdict in Risperdal Case

PHILADELPHIA — A Pennsylvania appellate court has upheld a $76.6 million plaintiffs’ verdict in a Risperdal male breast growth case, finding the evidence supported the jury’s award of damages to a 16-year-old boy and his mother.

In a Nov. 26 opinion, the Pennsylvania Superior Court further found that the plaintiffs’ failure-to-warn claim is not preempted by federal law because the defendant drug makers could have enhanced the Risperdal warning label via the Food and Drug Administration’s Changes Being Effected regulation.

A.Y. and his mother B.A.Y., both Tennessee residents, sued Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc., Janssen Research & Development LLC, and Johnson & …