Brown & Szaller Successful in Ohio Legislature

As someone once said, "If at first you don't succeed, try, try, again!" And that is exactly what Brown & Szaller did to help Ohio Dalkon Shield IUD personal injury victims.
When Ohio Dalkon Shield victims, represented by Brown & Szaller, filed their claims in Robbins' bankruptcy in 1985 and 1986, their claims were considered "timely." However, as the bankruptcy proceeded throughout the years, Ohio law changed. The result was that those claimants could not file lawsuits in Ohio courts after Robins began to emerge from bankruptcy in 1990., because they were now time-barred by Ohio's statute of limitations. This was most certainly a miscarriage of justice.

In order to overcome this problem, the firm successfully argued a case in the Ohio Supreme Court, and the Court held that anyone who filed a timely claim in the bankruptcy could proceed to trial, even if the law changed.

Unfortunately, that decision was overturned by the United States Supreme Court.
Based on the United States Supreme Court decision, lawyers at Brown & Szaller were concerned that Dalkon Shield lawsuits could again be dismissed, based on the Ohio stature of limitations.

However, as Kenneth Knabe, one of the members of the firm said, "If we can't change the law in court, let's change it in the legislature." And that is what Brown & Szaller did.

Although it seemed impossible at first, Brown & Szaller successfully lobbied the Ohio legislature to pass a new statute protecting victims of the Dalkon Shield IUD. Ohio Representative Diane Grendell sponsored the new legislation, and eight Dalkon Shield clients represented by the firm testified before the legislature. The statute was overwhelmingly passed by the Ohio House of Representatives (61-4), and by the Ohio Senate (32-0). Governor George Voinovich signed the new law on August 16, 1995. We are happy to report that this new law permits Ohio Dalkon Shield victims to file lawsuits in Ohio courts, and no statute of limitations can be raised to bar their claims.