In a recent development in the Cymbalta withdrawal litigation, a California jury has declared that manufacturing company Eli Lilly & Co. had not failed to deliver adequate withdrawal warnings. In the first case in this litigation movement to go to trial, the jury had returned a defense verdict after finding that the plaintiff side had failed to deliver sufficient evidence.

This trial revolves around the Cymbalta withdrawal lawsuit filed by Plaintiff Claudia H. in 2013, alleging that withdrawal symptoms from the drug had caused her to suffer sharp and painful “brain zaps.” These electric-like sensations occur in the brain, and are often accompanied by nausea and severe headaches. Claudia also indicates that she suffered extreme anxiety, fear, stomach pains, suicidal thoughts, muscle spams, hot flashes, and body shivers. These painful symptoms started soon after she stopped using the highly popular antidepressant.

Cymbalta was approved by the FDA in 2004 to treat major forms of depression. Since its release, it has become one of the most popularly-prescribed antidepressants in the United States; it has also been linked to severe withdrawal symptoms, as early as 2001. This drug, manufactured by Eli Lilly & Co., has made them millions through the years. Recent negative press regarding Cymbalta withdrawal symptoms, however, has caused public outcry, and has spurred numerous negligence lawsuits. Cymbalta is a part of the family of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), which work by controlling a specific brain chemicals to insure mental stability.

Overview of Cymbalta Withdrawal Allegations

A federal jury, centered in the U.S. District Court of Central California, had started listening to the evidence involved in the Cymbalta withdrawal lawsuit, and returned a verdict in favor of the defense. According to legal records, Eli Lilly’s attorneys had argued that the plaintiff’s symptoms could have been caused by other undiscovered medical conditions, which may have created the need for Cymbalta in the first place. Furthermore, the company maintains that there is currently no evidence of long-lasting Cymbalta withdrawal symptoms, despite the numerous injury reports suggesting otherwise.

According to a study conducted in 2012 by the Institute for Safe Medication Practices (ISMP), patients who had abruptly stopped taking Cymbalta suffered severe withdrawal symptoms. The study pointed out that more than half of the cases lasted longer than two weeks, with the most severe cases reportedly lasting months. The Cymbalta withdrawal lawsuits allege that Eli Lilly had deliberately concealed and misled patients and doctors about the severity of these withdrawal symptoms, describing them as rare and only lasting for short periods of times.

This case was the first of several hundred lawsuits to reach a jury trail for Cymbalta withdrawal allegations, with the second case scheduled to start in late August 2015. The trial for this lawsuit was processed as a panel of federal judges are being requested to consolidate all pending Cymbalta withdrawal lawsuits filed throughout the country. By coordinating these numerous similar lawsuits to be under one judge, it will avoid conflicting rulings from different judges, avoid duplicate discovery, and will further serve the convenience of the parties.

Previously, the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (JPML) had rejected a motion to consolidate these Cymbalta withdrawal lawsuits in December 2014. The panel explained that at the time of the consolidation request, there were not enough cases and not enough law firms involved with these Cymbalta withdrawal lawsuits. Last month, a group of plaintiffs filed a motion to the panel to reconsider centralizing these lawsuits, pointing out all the benefits it would serve to both parties.