Wyeth Pharmaceuticals Inc. asked the Nevada Supreme Court for a new trial over its hormone replacement drugs, arguing Monday that a Reno jury wasn’t properly instructed on punitive damages before awarding three women a multimillion dollar judgment on claims the drugs caused their breast cancer.
Lane Heard, a Washington, D.C., lawyer representing the Madison, N.J.-based pharmaceutical giant that has since been acquired by Pfizer Inc., said the jury’s “premature” deliberation of punitive damages and comments about Wyeth executives’ salaries made by the women’s attorneys prejudiced jurors against the company.
