Marine Martin has been waiting for this decision for twelve years. Twelve years that the whistleblower has been leading the revolt against Sanofi to have the pharmaceutical group recognized as responsible for the Depakine scandal, the antiepileptic drug marketed since 1967 and responsible for congenital malformations and neurodevelopmental disorders in thousands of children of mothers treated during pregnancy.
Also read the survey: Article reserved for our subscribers Around the Sanofi factory that produces Depakine, families break the silence on their children’s illnesses
Add to your selections
In a judgment delivered on Monday, September 9, that The World consulted, the Paris judicial court ordered the French laboratory to pay him – and his two children – 284,867.24 euros in compensation. In its judgment, the court declared Sanofi “responsible for a failure to provide information on the malformation and neurodevelopmental risks of Depakine, which it marketed, for maintaining in circulation a product that it knew to be defective, and for a lack of vigilance at the time of Mrs. Marine Martin’s pregnancies, between 1998 and 2002”.
Salomé, the eldest, was born with facial malformations and suffered from cognitive, visual and dyspraxic disorders. Florent, the youngest, was born with facial, hand and penis malformations – which required two surgeries –, developed attention and language disorders and was diagnosed with Asperger’s autism. As a student, he still needs six hours of family help with everyday tasks.
“Thousands of children, major victims”
“This is a tremendous victory because Sanofi, which invoked the ten-year limitation period, was dismissed. They were convicted on the basis of the fault regime and the defectiveness of Depakine, reacts Martine Martin, founder of the Association for Helping Parents of Children Suffering from Anticonvulsant Syndrome (Apesac), which now has more than 8,000 membersThis opens the door to thousands of children, adult victims, who could not hope to enter justice. The Nanterre court had already ordered Sanofi to compensate victims in 2022, but for more recent cases.
Read the story (2022): Article reserved for our subscribers Depakine: Sanofi’s responsibility recognized by the courts
Add to your selections
According to estimates – contested by Sanofi – from the Health Insurance and the National Agency for the Safety of Medicines, sodium valproate, the active ingredient in Depakine, is responsible for malformations (heart, kidneys, limbs, fingers, face, etc.) in 2,150 to 4,100 children, and neurodevelopmental disorders (autism, language delay, etc.) in 16,600 to 30,400 children.
The court dismissed Sanofi’s requests for prescription, but also for a stay of proceedings. “Sanofi has embarked on an incomprehensible legal guerrilla war, comments Charles Joseph-Oudin, the lawyer of Marine Martin and Apesac. It is urgent that the company abandons its attitude of contemptuous denial towards the victims of its product.”
You have 59.02% of this article left to read. The rest is reserved for subscribers.
