Fleming v. Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

186 F. Supp. 3d 826, 2016 WL 3180299
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Tennessee
DecidedMay 6, 2016
DocketNo. 2:15-cv-02799-JPM-dkv
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 186 F. Supp. 3d 826 (Fleming v. Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Tennessee primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Fleming v. Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., 186 F. Supp. 3d 826, 2016 WL 3180299 (W.D. Tenn. 2016).

Opinion

ORDER GRANTING JANSSEN PHARMACEUTICALS, INC. AND JOHNSON & JOHNSON’S MOTION TO DISMISS

JON P. McCALLA, UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

Before the Court is Defendants Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Johnson & Johnson’s (“Defendants”) Motion to Dismiss, filed February 12, 2016. (ECF No. 18). For the following reasons, Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss is GRANTED. Accordingly, the Court dismisses all. claims against Johnson & Johnson with prejudice; dismisses Plaintiffs design defect claims with prejudice; dismisses Plaintiffs Tennessee Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”) claims with prejudice; and dismisses Plaintiffs Tennessee Product Liability Act (“TPLA”) claims without prejudice. Plaintiff is permitted to re-plead his TPLA claims with specificity within thirty (30) days of the entry of this order, up to and including July 6, 2016.

I. BACKGROUND

A. Factual History

Plaintiff Wardell Fleming (“Plaintiff’), a Tennessee resident, brings suit against Defendants Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (“Janssen”), a Pennsylvania corporation; Johnson & Johnson, a New Jersey corporation; and Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Corp. (“Tanabe”), a Japanese corporation, for injuries and damages caused by Invo-kana, a diabetes drug. (Compl. ¶¶ 1-3, 7-10, 18-23, ECF No. 1.) Plaintiff alleges that Defendants Tanabe and Johnson & Johnson collaborated to design and develop In-vokana. (Id. ¶ 18.) Defendant Janssen, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, acquired marketing rights to the drug in North America and marketed, advertised, distributed, and sold Invokana in states including Tennessee. (Id. ¶ 19.) In-vokana was approved by the FDA for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. (Id. ¶21.) Invokana, an SGLT2 inhibitor, was the first drug' of its kind approved by the FDA. (Id. ¶ 230

The FDA has since received a significant number of reports of diabetic ketoaci-dosis and kidney infection from Invokana users. (Id. ¶ 26.) On May 15, 2015, the FDA issued a Public Health Advisory regarding a link between SGLT2 inhibitors and diabetic ketoacidosis. (Id. ¶ 27.) Plaintiff alleges that, despite the reported adverse events, Defendants have continued to fail to warn patients about diabetic ke-toacidosis as a risk of taking Invokana. (Id. ¶¶ 28-30.) On December 4, 2015, the FDA updated Invokana’s warning label to include a warning about ketoacidosis and serious urinary tract infections which can develop into kidney infections. (Id. ¶ 31.)

Plaintiff alleges that Defendants knew of the risk that severe injury could be caused by Invokana. (Id. ¶ 33.) Plaintiff began taking Invokana in or about November 2013. (Id. ¶ 35.) Plaintiff suffered kidney failure, kidney damage, and reduced kidney function after taking Invokana; in addition to physical injuries, Plaintiff also alleges emotional injuries, loss of enjoyment of life, and economic loss. (Id. ¶¶ 40, 48.) Plaintiff asserts that his injuries were a reasonably foreseeable consequence of Defendants’ conduct and Invokana’s defects. (Id. ¶ 43.) Plaintiff asserts he would not have used Invokana if he had been properly warned. [830]*830(Id. ¶ 45.) Plaintiff asserts that there are several safer alternative products available. (Id. ¶ 32.)

B. Procedural History

On December 14, 2015, Plaintiff Wardell Fleming filed , a complaint against Defendants Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Johnson & Johnson, and Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Corp. in the Western District of Tennessee. (EOF No. 1.) On February 12, 2016, Defendants Janssen and Johnson & Johnson (“Defendants”) filed a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim and for lack of jurisdiction over Johnson & Johnson. (ECF No. 18.) Plaintiff responded in opposition on March 14, 2016. (ECF No. 33; see also ECF No. 31.) Defendants filed a reply on April 1, 2016. (ECF No. 36.)

The Court held a telephonic scheduling conference on March 17, 2016. (Min. Entry, ECF No. 34.) On April 6, 2016, the Court held a second scheduling conference and a hearing on the instant motion. (Min. Entry, ECF No. 38.)

On April 22, 2016, Defendant Tanabe filed a motion to dismiss. (ECF No. 42.) This motion remains pending.

II. LEGAL STANDARD

A. Motion to Dismiss for Lack of Personal Jurisdiction

A court may dismiss a claim for “lack of personal jurisdiction.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(2). “The plaintiff bears the burden of making a prima facie showing of the court’s personal jurisdiction over the defendant.” Intera Corp. v. Henderson, 428 F.3d 605, 615 (6th Cir.2005). A plaintiff “can meet this burden by ‘establishing with reasonable particularity sufficient contacts between [a defendant] and the forum state to support jurisdiction.’ ” Neogen Corp. v. Neo Gen Screening, Inc., 282 F.3d 883, 887 (6th Cir.2002) (quoting Provident Nat’l Bank v. Cal. Fed. Sav. Loan Ass’n, 819 F.2d 434, 437 (3d Cir.1987)). When the court does not conduct an evi-dentiary hearing on the issue, it must “not consider the facts proffered by the defendant that conflict with those offered by the plaintiff, and will construe the facts in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party.” Id. (citation omitted).

B. Motion to Dismiss for Failure to State a Claim

A court may dismiss a claim for “failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6). “To survive a motion to dismiss, á complaint must contain sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, to ‘state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.’ ” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 173 L.Ed.2d 868 (2009) (quoting Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570, 127 S.Ct. 1955, 167 L.Ed.2d 929 (2007)).

A complaint must contain a short and plain statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief_ A claim is facially plausible when the pleaded factual content allows the court to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is hable for the misconduct alleged.... [T]he court need not accept as true allegations that are con-clusory or require unwarranted inferences based on the alleged facts.

Newberry v. Silverman, 789 F.3d 636, 640 (6th Cir.2015) (citations and internal quotation marks omitted). “Plausibility is not the same as probability, but it requires ‘more than a sheer possibility that a defendant has acted unlawfully.’” Mik v. Fed. Home Loan Mortg. Corp., 743 F.3d 149, 157 (6th Cir.2014) (quoting Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937). A court must “construct ] the complaint in a light most favorable to the plaintiff.” HDC, LLC v. City of Ann Arbor, 675 F.3d 608, 611 (6th Cir.2012).

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186 F. Supp. 3d 826, 2016 WL 3180299, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/fleming-v-janssen-pharmaceuticals-inc-tnwd-2016.