Wilkinson Stekloff Wins Bellwether Xarelto Trial For Bayer

Beth Wilkinson, co-founding partner of Wilkinson, Walsh + Eskovitz, led the defense team to victory.

WASHINGTON – The Wilkinson, Walsh + Eskovitz trial team led by Founding Partner Beth Wilkinson secured a major victory for Bayer in the first bellwether trial in a multi-district litigation involving the drug Xarelto. The lawsuit alleged that Bayer, and Johnson & Johnson subsidiary Janssen Pharmaceuticals, were liable for claims that the Xarelto label did not adequately instruct doctors on how to minimize the risk of bleeding associated with the anticoagulant Xareltot.

The nine-member jury in New Orleans returned a unanimous defense verdict roughly one hour after closing arguments. Wilkinson served as lead counsel on the case and delivered both opening and closing arguments at trial. David Dukes of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough and Richard Sarver of Barrasso Usdin Kupperman Freeman & Sarver also served as trial counsel for Bayer and Janssen, respectively.

The case is In Re Xarelto Products Liability Litigation, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Louisiana, No. 14-md-2592. Wilkinson, Walsh + Eskovitz and Beth Wilkinson will continue to serve as lead counsel in the second bellwether trial in the multi-district litigation, scheduled to begin on May 30, 2017.

Read more about Wilkinson Stekloff’s successful representation in The National Law Journal.

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Contact: media@wilkinsonstekloff.com