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When the odds are stacked against you

Facing mass tort litigation of emotionally charged cases that threaten its reputation and business operations, GlaxoSmithKline has turned to King & Spalding to defend its franchise drug, Paxil, and its bottom line for over a decade.

Decades of relentless litigation
Thousands of plaintiff claims
Billions in potential liability

Resilience and endurance

Out of nearly 7,700 cases, only four have gone to trial – two in which we achieved dismissals and two that found for the plaintiff, but with considerably smaller damages than requested.

3 Waves of Allegations

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Suicide/
Violence

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Discontinuation

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Pregnancy

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Cases
Time
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Focus on the science

K&S maintained a consistent focus on the medical science and proven facts. This enabled K&S to navigate the emotional aspects of the case while presenting scientific, factual and legal rationales for dismissal.

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A multi-faceted defense

For this case, GSK needed both national reach and local knowledge, which K&S was able to deliver. Multiple related issues required the expertise of highly specialized legal teams in jurisdictions that posed great risk. At the height of the litigation, it required 100 lawyers and paralegals to work collaboratively from a number of practice groups across K&S offices in Atlanta, Charlotte, Washington, D.C., New York, Houston, San Francisco and Los Angeles.

Successful “360 representation” combines experienced leadership, access to specialized legal expertise and longstanding relationships with local counsel in cities across the U.S.
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Meet the lawyers on this case:

Bayman andrew

Andrew T. Bayman
Partner

Varner chilton davis

Chilton Davis Varner
Partner

Strotz peter

Peter A. Strotz
Partner

Zimmer fritz 03

Donald F. Zimmer, Jr.
Partner

Redwine meredith

Meredith Bunn Redwine
Partner

Davis todd

Todd P. Davis
Partner

Woo robert

Robert K. Woo, Jr.
Partner

Friedman robert

Robert B. Friedman
Partner

Brown mark

Mark S. Brown
Partner

Klingler amanda

Amanda J. Klingler
Partner

Sollers wick

Wick Sollers
Partner

Hester theodore

Theodore M. Hester
Partner

Bucholtz jeffrey

Jeffrey S. Bucholtz
Partner

Devereaux stephen

Stephen B. Devereaux
Partner

Drake geoffrey

Geoffrey M. Drake
Partner

No bio image

Ursula M. Henninger
Partner

Hurley bruce

Bruce Hurley
Partner

Magruder meghan

Meghan Magruder
Partner

Mcclurg lauren

Lauren Reeder McClurg
Partner

No bio image

Daniel F. Donovan, III
Partner