Hiring a Qualified Yaz Lawyer

On April 10, 2012, the FDA issued a safety communication stating that birth control pills containing the progestin “drospirenone”—which includes Yaz and Yasmin—may be associated with a higher risk of blood clots than other birth control pills. The agency required manufacturers, including Bayer, to update their warning labels so that physicians and patients would be aware of the risk. Prior to this change, the product labels for Yaz, Yasmin, Ocella, and other birth control options with drospirenone did not contain such clear warnings. Women who took the pills prior to that date may rightly feel that they were not properly advised about the health risks. Blood clots can be serious, and in some cases, may lead to a pulmonary embolism or stroke.

Women who have suffered from blood clots and related injuries after taking Yaz and Yasmin may be eligible to file a lawsuit. Representing oneself against a big company like Bayer, however, is typically not advised in these types of cases. Finding a qualified and experienced Yaz lawyer, on the other hand, may increase your odds of negotiating a settlement or winning a jury award to help cover medical expenses, future treatments, and pain and suffering.

Why injured women need a Yaz lawyer

Women who have experienced hospital stays, extensive medical treatment, or other hardships because of Yaz side effects (such as blood clots and deep vein thrombosis, or DVT) are likely to be facing financial hardships while trying to recover their health. In addition to medical expenses, the situation may have caused lost time at work, which could also lead to late payments and other debts.

An experienced Yaz attorney can help in many ways. These include:

• Handle your case so you have time to recover
• Provide the expertise needed to go up against a big pharmaceutical company
• Collect the evidence necessary to present a strong case
• Increase your odds of receiving the compensation you deserve
• Provide the connections with experts needed to support your claims—which may include the use of private investigators, witnesses, medical experts, and more
• Manage the paperwork needed for all facets of the case
• Negotiate with the defendants in the case to try to come to a settlement agreement
• Take your case to trial, if necessary

Though the FDA has warned about the potential increased risk of Yaz blood clots, a plaintiff still has to show in a convincing way that her injuries resulted because of her consumption of the birth control pills. Bayer is a large company with many resources, and is likely to defend its position that the birth control pills do not cause such injuries. Plaintiffs need a Yaz lawyer who understands how the pharmaceutical industry works. Such a professional can gather the evidence required to show that the company did not provide adequate warnings, and that their negligence resulted in the plaintiff’s injury.

Tips for hiring a good Yaz attorney

When looking for the right Yaz attorney, it helps to keep a few tips in mind.

• Ignore advertising: Any attorney can pay for a good advertisement. This has no bearing on the experience or expertise of the individual.
• Look for experience: To go up against a big company like Bayer, you need a Yaz lawyer who has been in court before with big pharmaceutical companies. Seek out those who have experience in Yaz lawsuits if possible, or at least in drug injury lawsuits. You also want to find out if the attorney has been to trial on these types of cases, and how many of those cases resulted in a positive settlement or verdict for the plaintiff.
• Ignore location: Though you may be tempted to choose a Yaz lawyer that is local, that isn’t always the best decision. Today’s technology allows easy communication regardless of location, so having a Yaz attorney that is closer to the main hubs of litigation may be more beneficial to you in the long run.
• Make sure you get the lawyer you think you’re getting: Some law firms will take your case, but then hand it off to a less-experienced lawyer than you initially worked with. Make sure the Yaz attorney you speak with initially is going to be the one handling your case. If not, insist on meeting with that person and researching his or her qualifications before agreeing to representation.
• Check the lawyer’s reputation with other lawyers and judges: You can go to either www.Martindale.com or www.Lawyers.com and look up attorneys in the U.S. These sites will provide you with information on how the Yaz lawyer is seen by other lawyers and judges, giving you some insight into their reputation in the industry. You can also find client feedback on these sites.
• Observe the lawyer’s communication: It’s vital that your lawyer and the lawyer office personnel communicate with you in a way that makes you feel comfortable and confident. Insist on an initial free consultation, and observe how you are treated. Are phone calls answered promptly? If your lawyer is gone, does he or she return calls in a timely manner? Is he or she open to your questions? You may be working with this person for many months or even years, so you want to be sure that the working relationship is a good one.

Developments in Yaz litigation

Bayer faces thousands of Yaz lawsuits filed by women who have allegedly been injured by Yaz and Yasmin birth control pills. In October 2009, the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation consolidated all federal cases into one court in the Southern District of Illinois. Since that time, Judge Herndon, who is overseeing the Yaz MDL proceedings, has managed to encourage negotiation between the parties. To date, Bayer has agreed to Yaz settlements in over 3,000 cases, for a total of about $750 million.

Initially, Bayer was agreeing to settlements only in cases that involved blood clot and related injuries, but more recently, they indicated they may be willing to make similar negotiations in cases involving gallbladder disease. In April 2013, they agreed to a settlement of up to $24 million for these plaintiffs.

Coordinated proceedings have also been established at the state level in California, Philadelphia, and New Jersey. Women who believe they have sustained serious injury due to taking Yaz, Yasmin, or Ocella are advised to consult with a qualified Yaz lawyer as soon as possible to determine if they are eligible to seek compensation by filing a lawsuit.