Drug Safety Advocates

Baum Hedlund has been a strong advocate for publicly exposing the serious risks of a number of pharmaceutical drugs and has pushed for increased warnings of these risks.  In particular, we have been successful in exposing the risks related to a class of antidepressants known as SSRIs (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors). 

Baum Hedlund staff and clients have attended Congressional hearings and several FDA hearings investigating the risks of SSRI-antidepressants.   A Baum Hedlund attorney and several of our clients have testified on several occasions before the government regarding the need for proper warnings on antidepressants. Baum Hedlund has presented evidence about the dangers of SSRI (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor) antidepressants three times before the Food and Drug Administration’s Psychopharmacologic Drugs Advisory Committee and once before the California State Senate.  Baum Hedlund staff and clients have also met with FDA and Department of Health and Human Resources officials, as well as members of the U.S. House and Senate regarding the risk of antidepressant induced suicidality.

Our firm also assisted Congressional Investigators from two separate Committee investigations. Two Congressional hearings were later held at which pharmaceutical executives and FDA officials were interrogated for their failure to protect the public health related to antidepressants and their association with suicidality.

The FDA now requires a black box warning on all antidepressant labels alerting physicians and patients to the increased risk of suicidality.


For more information and resources concerning antidepressants, visit
antidepressantadversereactions.com.

Baum Hedlund has also represented more than 100 families of hemophiliacs infected by HIV contaminated blood-derived products (used by hemophiliacs for blood coagulation). It was considered one of the worst drug industry related medical disasters in history. As with all of its drug litigation, Baum Hedlund dug deep into drug company coffers to find the evidence of what went wrong. That information was not only used at trial, but also provided to authorities in various countries.

After reading a quote in the New York Times by senior partner, Michael Baum, Taiwan’s Ministry of Health invited him to their country for an urgent meeting. Michael Baum traveled to Taiwan and shared the firm’s collection of smoking gun documents with the Ministry, showing them that the U.S. manufacturers of hemophilia blood-derived products were knowingly urging doctors to prescribe HIV contaminated medication to their hemophilia community. Representatives of hemophilia communities in Ireland and Hong Kong have also consulted with Michael concerning his knowledge of the U.S. manufacturers blood-derived product contamination and dumping activities.

Another Baum Hedlund partner, senior trial attorney, Ron Goldman, was involved in ground-breaking drug litigation in the 1960s. Ron was actively involved in exposing severe side effects, including birth defects, associated with the cholesterol-lowering drug MER/29 (triparanol), manufactured by Richardson-Merrell (later known as Marion Merrell Dow). The company was ultimately indicted for supplying the FDA with falsified information about the drug.

Baum Hedlund’s proactive attorneys have also:

  • Helped obtain U.S. legislation to provide humanitarian aid to thousands of families affected by HIV-contaminated hemophilia medication.

  • Testified at a special State Senate Transportation Committee Hearing whose purpose was to probe events leading up to the fatal trucking accident, which killed our clients' son. A California state senator invited our firm to testify at a hearing investigating the Caltrans Transportation Permits Office, who issued a permit to a trucking company carrying a load two inches higher than the overpasses on that freeway. When the truck traveled under the overpass its large tank was ripped from the truck by the overpass and crushed the car traveling behind the truck, killing our clients' son.

  • Helped obtain equitable treatment for families of victims of airline crashes occurring in the deep ocean by advancing the amendment of the outdated 80-year-old federal "Death on the High Seas Act" which used to drastically limit the amount of recovery in similar crashes.

  • Testified before state legislators in a train crash investigation in order to improve train safety.

  • Testified before a state seismic safety commission in order to improve earthquake proofing for building facades.

  • Helped in a recall campaign of defective drain covers in spas and hot tubs so long-haired people would not drown by being caught in them.

  • Organized and funded a national campaign in all fifty states and Canada urging school bus owners, operators and purchasers to relocate gas tanks positioned next to the front doors, to an unexposed position inside the frame thus reducing the chance of, and allow for more exit routes in case of, a fire.