Pharmaceutical company Servier took legal action in March to obtain reimbursement by the state of 30% of the compensation already paid to the victims of the drug Mediator, he said Wednesday.
Partial payment of the sums paid
"The court has been asked, taking into account the decisions of the administrative courts, and in particular the decision of principle of the Council of State, to fix the share of the State so that a partial assumption of the We have paid either the State, whose liability has been set at 30% by the administrative courts, "said AFP Jacques-Antoine Robert, lawyer Laboratoires Servier. Servier appealed to the Paris Administrative Court in March, he added, confirming information from Challenges .
In a 2016 decision, the Council of State had indeed considered that the state was responsible for repairs, but only partially, because of the "wrongful acts" of the pharmaceutical company Servier. In August 2017, the Paris Administrative Court of Appeal had set the State's share of this liability at 30%. A few months later, the state was sentenced for the first time to compensate a plaintiff in the Mediator case for 30% of the total amount of compensation, according to a judgment of the administrative court.
An action for lack of response from the state, according to Servier
Since the first indemnifications in 2012, Servier paid a total of 131.8 million euros, according to a countdown to 30 August on the group's website. More than 3,700 patients have received an offer, adding those who have filed a claim with the National Office for Compensation Medical Accidents (Oniam) and those who have entered into a transactional agreement with Servier after initiating a procedure in justice.
"As a result of the various administrative decisions that have held State responsibility up to 30% (...) Servier laboratories have decided to continue to compensate all patients, without asking the question of of responsibility, so as to ensure that patients are compensated first, "said Servier's lawyer. "In a second step, once the patients were compensated, the question arose - and it was asked to the State via a letter to the Directorate General of Health - to know what their position was following these decisions. justice, "said Jacques-Antoine Robert. In the absence of a response from the state, "it was necessary that we make a recourse not to miss deadlines," says Robert.