Claim Filing

You must file a Claim by Tuesday January 14, 2025

Click here to file a Claim Form

For easy-to-follow instructions on how to submit your Claim, please click HERE pdf

All capitalized terms used in the Distribution Protocol have the same meaning as in the Settlement Agreement.

Process to Advance a Claim

  1. A Class Member who wishes to receive benefits pursuant to the settlement of this Class Proceeding must provide the Claims Administrator with a Claim Form before the Claims Deadline.
  2. Mailed or couriered Claim Forms received after the Claims Deadline but post marked or deposited with the courier on or before the Claims Deadline will be deemed received on the post marked date or the date deposited with the courier.
  3. E-mailed or faxed Claim Forms will be deemed received on the date received by the Claims Administrator.

Determination of Eligibility

  1. To receive a Compensatory Payment, a Claimant must satisfy the Claims Administrator that he or she is an Eligible Claimant by the completion and submission of a valid Claim Form with related medical and pharmacy records.
  2. To be eligible for compensation, the Claimant Mother, Claimant Child, or their legal or estate representative must satisfy the Claims Officer that:
    1. Neither the Claimant Mother or Claimant Child:
      1. had a cardiovascular birth defect with no other Qualifying Congenital Malformation(s); and
      2. was a resident of the Province of British Columbia prior to February 3, 2006 when they were prescribed Paxil® or Paxil CR™;
    2. The records described below confirm that the Claimant Mother of the Claimant Child was prescribed branded (and not generic) Paxil® or Paxil CR™ (Paxil) in Canada.
    3. Paxil was dispensed to the Claimant Mother during the First Trimester of pregnancy.
    4. The prescription for Paxil referred to in paragraph 6(b) was dispensed:
      1. prior to February 3, 2006, in which case no percentage reduction will be applied to any Compensatory Payment;
      2. between February 3, 2006 and February 3, 2007, in which case a reduction of 50% will be applied to any Compensatory Payment; or
      3. February 3, 2007 or later, in which case, the Claimant will not be eligible for compensation.
    5. The Claimant Child was born alive and subsequently diagnosed with a birth defect that constitutes a Qualifying Congenital Malformation.

Qualifying Congenital Malformations

Qualifying Congenital Malformations are limited to the following exhaustive list:

  1. Anencephaly;
  2. Spina bifida;
  3. Encephalocele;
  4. Craniosynostosis;
  5. Cleft lip;
  6. Cleft palate;
  7. Structural cardiovascular defects;
  8. Diaphragmatic hernia;
  9. Gastroschisis;
  10. Omphalocele;
  11. Hypospadias;
  12. Undescended testes; and
  13. Club foot

To establish a diagnosis of a Qualifying Congenital Malformation, and the severity and/or necessary medical intervention to treat or resolve same, the Class Member must provide supporting medical documentation, which may include medical records, clinical records, hospital records, pathology records, laboratory records, and similar records. The records may be supplemented by a sworn affidavit of the Class Member’s health care provider that confirms the diagnosis, treatment, and nature of the injury.

Reduction in Compensation for Confounding Factors

The Claims Officer will have the discretion to reduce the points value assigned to Claims of eligible Class Members on a percentage basis up to a maximum of 50% where there are confounding factors from the list below that, in the opinion of the Claims Officer based on his or her review of the available medical records, may have caused or contributed to the Qualifying Congenital Malformation(s) or other underlying health issues that impacted the Class Member’s health, care, and/or quality of life, being:

To establish a diagnosis of a Qualifying Congenital Malformation, and the severity and/or necessary medical intervention to treat or resolve same, the Class Member must provide supporting medical documentation, which may include medical records, clinical records, hospital records, pathology records, laboratory records, and similar records. The records may be supplemented by a sworn affidavit of the Class Member’s health care provider that confirms the diagnosis, treatment, and nature of the injury.

  1. genetic diagnoses of the kind associated with one or more of the Qualifying Congenital Malformations;
  2. smoking, alcohol and/or illicit drug use of the mother during pregnancy;
  3. maternal age;
  4. pre-gestational diabetes;
  5. metabolic disorders during pregnancy;
  6. body mass index outside of the normal range (18.5 to 25);
  7. significant physical trauma experienced during pregnancy; and/or
  8. exposures to medications or chemicals during pregnancy that are associated with birth defects, as determined by the Claims Officer.

Additionally, and to account for the resolution of class action litigation commenced in British Columbia concerning the use of Paxil during pregnancy, and the resulting compensation received by class members diagnosed with a cardiac defect, a percentage reduction may be applied where the Class Member resided in British Columbia and the Claimant Child was diagnosed with a cardiovascular defect in addition to at least one other Qualifying Congenital Malformation to reflect that any claim by these Class Members for a cardiovascular defect was previously settled.

Evidence of Prescription and Use

To establish the prescription and ingestion of Paxil necessary to being an Eligible Claimant, the Class Member must provide either prescription records, medical records, hospital records, clinical records, pharmacy records, receipts and/or insurance records (the Records) that show that brand name Paxil distributed by GSK was prescribed or dispensed to the Class Member in Canada during their First Trimester of pregnancy.

Where the records described in Item #11 are unavailable, and there is therefore no Record confirming that the Class Member was prescribed and/or ingested branded Paxil during the First Trimester, then the following may be considered by the Claims Administrator as acceptable evidence of the Class Member’s prescription and use of branded Paxil:

  1. A signed letter from the Class Member’s physician who treated the Class Member at the material time, which includes current contact information, confirming that, to the best of his or her recollection, branded Paxil was prescribed to the Class Member, or that the treating physician was otherwise aware that the Class Member was ingesting branded Paxil, during the First Trimester of the pregnancy; and
  2. An affidavit sworn by the Class Member’s physician who treated the Class Member at the material time explaining that:
    1. a search of the treating physician’s records was undertaken and no Record confirming proof of ingestion or use of branded Paxil could be located;
    2. the physician treated the Class Member at the material time;
    3. based on the review of the treating physician, there is no Record that contradicts the treating physician’s recollection with respect to the timing of use and branded Paxil being prescribed or ingested;
    4. to the best of the treating physician’s knowledge, there is no reason to doubt the accuracy of his or her recollection with respect to the Class Member’s prescription or use of Paxil during the First Trimester;
    5. his or her memory should be considered sufficient in the absence of Records; and
    6. the treating physician agrees to comply with any further questions or audits conducted by the Claims Administrator with respect to statements that the Class Member was prescribed or ingested branded Paxil during the First Trimester.

A statement by the Class Member that Paxil was ingested during the First Trimester of pregnancy is not sufficient unless the physician described in Item #12 is deceased or has ceased to practice and if medical records, including hospital records or physician notes, state that no medications were taken during pregnancy, the Class Member will not be eligible for compensation.

Evidence of prescription or purchase of Paxil will also be considered evidence of ingestion of the drug.

Where, after the first date of generic entry of paroxetine occurred, supporting medical documents reference only “paroxetine” and there is no indication in the evidence provided that Paxil, as opposed to generic paroxetine, was prescribed, then the Class Member will not be eligible for compensation.

For greater certainty, this settlement is designed to compensate for the use of branded Paxil distributed by GSK only, and not generic paroxetine.

Eligibility and Compensation to the Discretion of the Claims Administrator and Claims Officer

  1. Whether eligibility can be accurately determined through the Claim Form and the Records provided will be to the sole discretion of the Claims Administrator and Claims Officer.
  2. It is the responsibility of the Class Member, or his/her legal or estate representative, to provide sufficient evidence to support his/her Claim. Any fees or charges incurred by the Class Member with respect to filing his/her Claim are the responsibility of the Class Member.
  3. The determination of the validity of the Claims submitted by Class Members shall be made by the Claims Administrator and may be appealed to the Court of King’s Bench within 30 days of the Claims Administrator’s decision. The appeal shall be determined by Justice E. Jane Sidnell, or her designate, on the basis of written submissions only. The appeal decision shall be final and binding, and shall not be subject to any further appeal.
  4. The Claims Officer shall review each Claim Form and determine whether the individual is an Eligible Claimant.
  5. If a person is acting on behalf of the Claimant Mother or Claimant Child, the Claims Administrator shall require verification that the person has the legal authority to do so, and if the person is a lawyer in any jurisdiction, that he or she is licensed to practice law in a Canadian province or territory.
  6. Upon the request of counsel to the Plaintiffs or Defendants, or the Claims Officer, or at the discretion of the Claims Administrator, the Parties agree that the Claims Administrator may conduct an audit or such other review to confirm the veracity of (a) the Records, (b) the treating physician’s letter and accompanying affidavit, and/or (c) the absence of the Records and explanation for that absence. The Claims Administrator and Claims Officer may revoke any findings with respect to eligibility and/or adequate evidence of the Class Member’s claim as a result of the Claims Administrator’s review or audit.