As I noted earlier this week at Legal Blog Watch, the tally of Vioxx-related lawsuits filed against Merck is now at 23,800 and rising. Yet Merck maintains it will continue its litigation strategy of examining each case on its own merits. Is Merck’s strategy viable for the long haul? What do a recent jury win for Merck in New Orleans and the withdrawal of a case in Texas mean for the defense?

On the eve of another Vioxx trial starting Monday in New Orleans, Phillip Beck, Merck’s lead defense counsel in federal court, discusses his defense of Merck as our guest on this week’s legal-affairs podcast Coast to Coast. Beck, partner with the Chicago firm Bartlit Beck Herman Palenchar & Scott, is known for his earlier defense of Bayer in litigation over its cholesterol drug Baycol and his representation of George W. Bush in the 2000 presidential election case.

Listen to or download the broadcast at the Legal Talk Network.

Photo of Bob Ambrogi Bob Ambrogi

Bob is a lawyer, veteran legal journalist, and award-winning blogger and podcaster. In 2011, he was named to the inaugural Fastcase 50, honoring “the law’s smartest, most courageous innovators, techies, visionaries and leaders.” Earlier in his career, he was editor-in-chief of several legal publications, including The National Law Journal, and editorial director of ALM’s Litigation Services Division.