The Challenge

A maker of a psychiatric drug was accused of failing to warn the public about its side effects. Epiq was retained to provide administrative infrastructure, and opened a satellite office in Washington, D.C. to provide better support.

The Solution

Epiq developed a custom database for the drug, Claims Facilitator, which provided an interactive claims submission platform for 18 plaintiff firms including the electronic submission of imaged documentation such as medical records. Claims Facilitator tracked mass tort claim submissions, initial claim assessments, claim deficiencies and cures, decisions by Special Master, appeals, settlement awards and distribution allocations.

The Results

Claims Facilitator calculates monetary awards for individual claimants based on an award matrix Epiq developed that takes into account the age of the claimants and the severity of the injury. Complex statistical reports were developed for settlement distribution, plaintiff firm and injury levels.

Through a secure Web interface, Special Masters had unrestricted access to claimant data while plaintiff firms are limited to viewing their claimants and circumscribed data fields. Throughout the settlement, Epiq provided administrative assistance for the 18 plaintiff firms via toll-free telephone and email support.