The History Of GlaxoSmithKline

When GlaxoWellcome plc merged with SmithKline Beecham plc in 2000, GlaxoSmithKline became the company it is today. However, its roots go way back to 1843 when Thomas Beecham began selling a laxative bearing his name in Lancashire, England. The other main component of the company dates back to 1880 when Burroughs Wellcome & Company was founded in London.

SmithKline Beecham

Thomas Beecham’s business of selling laxatives quickly evolved and after a century of development, it was selling an extensive array of pharmaceuticals. Meanwhile, Smith, Kline & French Laboratories was developing its own pharmaceutical business. In 1989, the two companies would merge into SmithKline Beecham, which continued to expand its research and development in the United States and abroad.

GlaxoWellcome

Similar to the other main component of today’s iteration of GlaxoSmithKline, GlaxoWellcome came into being from a series of mergers. Over the next century, the company first started by pharmacists Henry Wellcome and Silas Burroughs eventually expanded into various areas of research, namely animal health. Glaxo Laboratories would eventually buy the Wellcome Company in 1995 and it would become GlaxoWellcome until the merger with SmithKline Beecham in 2000.

GlaxoSmithKline

In the eleven years since the merger, there has been much controversy surrounding GlaxoSmithKline. There have been a number of fines and settlements that the company has had to pay over the last decade including:

• 2003: After overcharging Medicaid for Paxil, Glaxo was forced to pay $88 million in a civil fine
• 2006: Patent fraud and anti-trust violations result in a $14 million settlement to resolve allegations
• 2006: Glaxo settles the largest tax dispute in U.S. Internal Revenue Services history by paying $3.1 billion
• 2010: Glaxo settles criminal and civil charges related to production of improperly made drugs in a Puerto Rico facility for $750 million

Is Paxil The Next Chapter?

Given Glaxo’s history of flouting the regulatory rules in the interest of the bottom line, it should surprise few that the company is defending Paxil in the face of evidence that it causes birth defects to children born to mothers taking it during pregnancy. The attorneys at the Rottenstein Law Group are here to help. If you have suffered harm from your Paxil prescription, please click here to request a free consultation to discuss your potential Paxil birth defect lawsuit.