Ever since the first fen-phen attorney tried a phen-fen lawsuit in California, more than 150 different plaintiffs have obtained settlements. Since then, there have been countless phen-fen lawsuits filed in California and across the country.

Legal News Watch reported in 2004 that in one phen-fen lawsuit, after only six hours of deliberation, a Los Angeles jury found in favor of a 56 year old man and awarded him $115,000.00. The man alleged that he suffered heart valve damage after using the fen-phen diet drug Pondimin.

There is one disturbing factor that has hampered the efforts of fen-phen attorneys and derailed some phen-fen lawsuits: California's Two Year Statute of Limitations.

One personal injury specialist from The Consumer Law Page penned the following observations:

Fen-Phen California Warning - Silent Injury-Secret Disease made worse by California's Two Year Statute of Limitations that Starts Running When Injury is First Suspected

California's two-year statute of limitations in personal injury cases begin to run upon the date of the injury or when a person discovers an injury has occurred. Anyone with a valid, enforceable and collectible claim, who files one day after the two year statute of limitations period, is facing dismissal of an outlawed claim.

But, in the case of injury caused by Fen-Phen, the injury is not readily apparent and the statute does not begin to run until the plaintiff knows or should reasonable knowledge of the injury, its cause and a suspicion of wrongdoing. Suspicion is examined from an objective standpoint; the issue is what a reasonable person would know or suspect under the facts of your case. And that is the problem faced by anyone who was treated with Fen-Phen for weight loss.

For this reason, anyone who was treated with Fen-Phen must have an echocardiogram at the earliest possible date to determine whether they have suffered any valve damage. To rely on an office examination when a FDA study shows that only one-half of those people with valve injury can be discovered by stethoscope is not wise.

As a solid precaution to avoid jeopardizing the patient's legal right to seek compensation for suffering a life-threatening and permanent injury that can progress and lead to heart surgery, an echocardiogram should be completed within the one year after the patient first suspected heart injury and if that test shows valve damage, the patient should immediately contact a fen-phen attorney.

California law dictates that whenever knowledge of any injury exists, and the facts that comprise that knowledge would cause -a reasonable person- to suspect negligence, the period covered by the statutory limitations begins, even if medical professionals have offered conflicting opinions or the victim is unaware that any damage has been inflicted.

However, when the victim can demonstrate -delayed discovery-, the two year limit can be extended and may not begin until the injury is clearly defined. This is not particularly helpful for patients who do not receive a definitive diagnosis for several years.