>AstraZeneca - Nexium
Date Filed: October 18, 2004
Court: Superior Court
Location: California
Ticker Symbol: AZN

Hagens Berman has filed a lawsuit on behalf of consumers who purchased Nexium. The suit contends that the drug's distributor, AstraZeneca (NYSE: AZN), conspired to redirect consumer loyalty from their highly profitable heartburn medication, Prilosec, to Nexium before Prilosec's patent expired and generic competition drove the price down.

According to the suit, AstraZeneca deceived consumers through a misleading advertising campaign, designed to convince consumers that Nexium was a new and improved heartburn drug.

The suit states that throughout AstraZeneca's advertising for Nexium, it alluded to clinical trials that proved Nexium's effectiveness over Prilosec. However, the trials referred to only tested Nexium at levels twice that of Prilosec, and thus were not a true indication of Nexium's effectiveness.

As detailed in the complaint, Nexium is a "mirror compound" of Prilosec, containing the same active molecule found in Prilosec. The suit contends that there is no evidence to support that Nexium is substantially better than Prilosec.

According to the suit, AstraZeneca's plan proved profitable. As generic competition drove the price for Prilosec down, sales for Nexium rose to $3.3 billion by 2003. Currently, Prilosec can be obtained over the counter and costs about one-eighth of the cost of Nexium.

The suit is brought by the American Federation of Labor - Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), the Congress of California Seniors, and the California Alliance for Retired Americans, on behalf of consumers who purchased Nexium.

The lawsuit claims that AstraZeneca is violating California's Unfair Competition Law and False Advertising Law.

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS:

September 3, 2009 - Today U.S. District Court Judge Eduardo Robreno ruled HBSS that will serve as interim co-lead counsel for both consumer and third-party payors in the AstraZeneca Nexium litigation.

The judge also consolidated three separate cases against the pharmaceutical company, ruling the HBSS suit representing the Pennsylvania Employee Benefit Trust Fund the lead case. 

October 27, 2004 - Hagens Berman has filed an amended complaint against pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca. The complaint now includes an individually named plaintiff who pursues the action on behalf of himself and the general public. As a proposed class-action suit, the class includes all persons in California who purchased Nexium in the past four years.

In addition to the allegations made in the original complaint, the amended complaint alleges that AstraZeneca violated the Consumers Legal Remedy Act and continues to benefit from Unjust Enrichment.



Key Attorneys

Steve W. Berman

Mr. Berman helped to found the firm in 1993, and is the managing partner. He has served as lead or co-le...   link >>