GAYLE v. PFIZER INC (2021)

United States Court of Appeals, Second Circuit.

Barbara GAYLE, Norma Clark, Laura Flores, Dorothy Jones, Rosalie Buonamano, Arnold Buonamano, Carol Meidl, Christie Kelly, Pearly Coleman, Mara Scott, Ronnie Scott, Cherry Richardson, Cheryl Dorsey, Tammy Axelrod, Bryan Axelrod, Charlie Johnson, Tawnya Lockhart, Leona Rhett, Tommie A. Rhett, Jacquelyn Lovett, Sharon Stewart, Shenna Albert, Carletha Foster, Michelle O'Bremski, Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. PFIZER, INC., Defendant-Appellee.*

20-1383-cv

Decided: May 12, 2021

PRESENT: PIERRE N. LEVAL, RAYMOND J. LOHIER, JR., Circuit Judges, GARY S. KATZMANN, Judge.**

FOR PLAINTIFFS-APPELLANTS: Keith L. Altman, Excolo Law, PLLC, Southfield, MI FOR DEFENDANT-APPELLEE: Mark S. Cheffo (Rachel Passaretti-Wu, Mara Cusker Gonzalez, Lincoln Davis Wilson, on the brief), Dechert LLP, New York, NY; Michael H. McGinley, Dechert LLP, Philadelphia, PA

SUMMARY ORDER

The Plaintiffs-Appellants appeal from the April 9, 2020 judgment of the District Court (Pauley, J.) dismissing their claims under New York law that the label of a drug manufactured by Defendant-Appellee Pfizer, Inc., Lipitor, does not adequately warn of a risk of type 2 diabetes. We assume the parties’ familiarity with the underlying facts and prior record of proceedings, to which we refer only as necessary to explain our decision to affirm.

For substantially the reasons stated by the District Court in its April 7, 2020 opinion and order, we conclude that the Plaintiffs-Appellants’ state-law failure-to-warn claims are preempted by federal law to the extent that they arose after February 2012, and that they are untimely to the extent that they arose before April 2016. Also for substantially the reasons stated by the District Court, we conclude that leave to amend the complaint is futile.

We have considered the Plaintiffs-Appellants’ remaining arguments and conclude that they are without merit. For the foregoing reasons, the judgment of the District Court is AFFIRMED.

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