Can I File a Suboxone Lawsuit?
29MarYou can file a Suboxone lawsuit if you can prove that the medication’s manufacturer was liable for damages due to Suboxone use. However, you must have sufficient evidence proving liability and your damages, and you must file before the statute of limits passes for your case.
Learn more about the effects of Suboxone and when you can file a lawsuit against liable parties following Suboxone consumption.
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Suboxone and Its Risks
Suboxone is a medication used to treat withdrawal symptoms in individuals addicted to opioids. Users take the medication in the form of a sublingual tablet that sits under the tongue, and its active ingredients include naloxone and buprenorphine, which help to alleviate withdrawal symptoms and make sobriety easier to attain.
People who take this medication typically do so in a rehabilitation facility or another clinical setting while recovering from opioid addiction. It also works in conjunction with therapy and other treatments, and its intended use is for individuals 15 or older.
What Are the Known Side Effects and Complications?
If people take enough Suboxone, they may experience side effects and dental complications. These issues can range from mild to severe in nature, even resulting in serious damage to individuals’ health.
Some side effects that the drug’s manufacturer, Indivior, lists include:
- Sweating
- Constipation
- Headaches
- Nausea and vomiting
- Dizziness and fainting
- Numbness in the mouth
Additionally, Suboxone may cause certain dental complications in individuals due to its sublingual administration method and caustic ingredients. One study found that this medication is more likely to cause tooth decay than other similar medications available because of its sublingual nature, leading to personal injury lawsuits against its manufacturer.
These dental injuries could include cavities, oral infections, tooth loss, and severe tooth decay. As a result of these and other health issues, many patients who’ve taken Suboxone have required oral surgery and other expensive procedures.
What Are the Legal Grounds for Filing a Suboxone Lawsuit?
If you sustain dental problems and can prove that Suboxone caused your injuries, you could have grounds for a Suboxone tooth decay lawsuit. While Indivior has acknowledged the risks associated with prolonged Suboxone use, recent lawsuits are claiming that the company failed to warn the public of its dangers before 2022.
This failure to warn is the main reason people are beginning to sue Indivior for damages resulting from Suboxone consumption.
Proving Liability
The recent product liability lawsuits against Indivior require plaintiffs to prove the company is liable for the damages they’ve sustained.
Specifically, if you want to succeed with a case against Indivior, you must prove the following elements:
- You used Suboxone under a prescription during opioid addiction recovery before 2022, which is the year Indivior began warning about the dangers of Suboxone use.
- You suffered related dental problems, such as broken teeth and tooth decay, that are different from typical rates of tooth decay.
- You sustained a certain number of damages due to these injuries, such as medical bills, lost income, and pain and suffering.
In addition, plaintiffs in these cases must show how the drug’s manufacturer should have been aware of or were aware of the dangers of Suboxone and failed to take the necessary action to address these issues.
Statute of Limitations in Florida
You must file your lawsuit before reaching the statute of limitations for your case. This statute is a deadline that determines when you’re able to make a case. Each state has different statutes of limitations in place for different case types, including personal injury and other civil lawsuits. These statutes are in place to help ensure people file lawsuits when evidence is more readily available and viable, and plaintiffs have a better chance of proving liability.
The statute of limitations for Suboxone cases and other product liability cases in Florida is two years from the time of the injury or discovery of the injury. As a result, you have two years to file a lawsuit before you’re unable to recover compensation.
While the statute of limitations for personal injury cases in Florida has historically been four years, a recent Florida tort reform bill reduced it to two. Additionally, this reform bill altered Florida’s comparative fault system with the aim of preventing plaintiffs from filing frivolous lawsuits. However, this bill has also presented a challenge to plaintiffs, preventing many of them from getting the total compensation they need from manufacturers and other liable parties in medical cases.
To get around the issues involving the new legislature in Florida, you may need to work with an experienced personal injury lawyer to help handle your case. The right attorney will help you build a strong case against Indivior and maximize your chances of getting complete compensation.
Potential Compensation for Suboxone Lawsuits
If you suffer tooth decay or other issues because of Suboxone use, you may ask, “What damages can I seek in a Suboxone lawsuit?” Generally, you may recover a combination of various economic and non-economic damages, depending on the circumstances.
The main type of damage you could recover is economic, which applies to direct financial losses resulting from Suboxone injuries. These include medical bills to cover treatments like cavities, oral surgery, tooth pulling, and other procedures. In addition, you may recover compensation for lost income due to time taken off from work to recover and seek treatment.
To complement economic damages, you could also recover non-economic damages. These include physical pain and suffering resulting from dental problems, along with trauma and emotional distress. People suffering from conditions like severe tooth decay often suffer psychologically because of the radical changes associated with it, including serious insecurities regarding their appearance.
Another type of damage you may recover in these cases is punitive damages, depending on the nature of Indivior’s negligence. Unlike economic and non-economic damages, punitive damages have the goal of punishing defendants for gross negligence or malicious intent. If your attorney and others find that Indivior was grossly negligent in failing to warn doctors and patients of Suboxone’s dangers, the courts may award punitive damages in addition to compensatory damages.
An attorney can help you identify and calculate all damages related to your case. He or she could then help build a strong case to prove these damages and help maximize compensation.
Factors That Can Impact Compensation
Multiple factors will ultimately affect your ability to recover compensation in a case against Indivior.
One of these primary factors is the amount and quality of evidence available to support your case. You must show that you took Suboxone with a prescription from a licensed medical professional, and this treatment must have taken place before 2022. Your medical documentation should also show that Suboxone use directly contributed to your dental problems, including severe tooth decay, tooth loss, and other issues.
Additionally, the aforementioned statute of limitations will impact your case. You must file your case within two years of your injuries or upon discovering your injuries resulting from Suboxone use. Failure to do so could severely compromise your ability to recover total compensation. However, there are some exceptions. For example, you could still have a case if you were a minor at the time of receiving Suboxone treatment, enabling you to file a lawsuit when you’re 18.
The extent of your injuries will also greatly impact your compensation. Generally, the more severe your dental complications or other health issues, the more damages will result, contributing to a higher amount of compensation. The compensation available makes it crucial to identify and quantify all damages involved and determine exactly how much your case is worth, which is where an experienced lawyer can help.
Determining Whether You Can File a Suboxone Lawsuit
If you or a loved one sustain damages and Suboxone use was the cause, you may recover compensation through a Suboxone lawsuit against drugmaker Indivior. However, you will need to gather enough evidence to prove that Indivior was liable for damages, and you should determine all damages associated with your case.
With the help of a personal injury attorney in Clearwater, FL, you could build a strong case against Indivior and recover total compensation. When consulting with an attorney, you can learn whether you have a valid case and determine the options available to you in terms of seeking compensation, including compensation for economic, non-economic, and punitive damages.
Taking the right steps will strengthen your case and increase your chances of succeeding with a Suboxone lawsuit.