Jan. 28 (Bloomberg) -- AstraZeneca Plc won dismissal of two lawsuits claiming its antipsychotic drug Seroquel caused diabetes and other health problems, averting a trial that was set to start Feb. 2.

U.S. District Judge Anne Conway in Orlando, Florida, today threw out the cases brought by Linda Guinn and David Haller, saying at a hearing that they “just didn’t meet the standards” to go to trial. Conway found the former Seroquel users couldn’t prove the drug contributed to their development of diabetes.

AstraZeneca faces about 9,000 lawsuits with more than 15,000 plaintiffs in the U.S. over claims that Seroquel causes diabetes. Seroquel, which generated sales of $4.03 billion in 2007, is the London-based company’s second-biggest seller after the ulcer treatment Nexium.

AstraZeneca rose 28 pence, or 1 percent, to 2,860 pence in London trading today. The American depositary receipts, each representing one ordinary share, climbed $1.25, or 3.1 percent, to $41.24 in New York Stock Exchange composite trading.

AstraZeneca officials said in an e-mailed statement today they were pleased with Conway’s ruling. They are seeking to have other cases in Florida and Delaware thrown out as well.

Preparation ‘Glitches’

“The company intends to litigate these cases on the individual merits and defend them vigorously,” Tony Jewell, an AstraZeneca spokesman in Wilmington, Delaware, said in the statement.

It is unclear how Conway’s ruling in the first cases set for trial would affect the remaining suits consolidated before her in Florida, said Richard Laminack, a Houston-based lawyer for Guinn and Haller.

“This ruling basically means that there were some glitches in how these two cases were prepared for trial,” Laminack said in an interview. He will appeal Conway’s ruling, he said.

Conway did find that ex-Seroquel users can use the theory that the drug contributed to the development of their diabetes in their arguments, Laminack said. The defects in Guinn’s and Haller’s suits are related to the specific facts of their cases, he added.

Seroquel is part of a class of newer antipsychotic drugs including Eli Lilly & Co.’s Zyprexa and Johnson & Johnson’s Risperdal that studies showed were associated with an increased risk of diabetes. The studies prompted the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to require AstraZeneca and other drugmakers to warn doctors of the risks in September 2003.

FDA Disclosure

Attorneys for Guinn, Haller and other plaintiffs argue that AstraZeneca was aware Seroquel use could lead to diabetes as far back as 2000 and failed to sufficiently warn doctors and patients.

AstraZeneca counters that it provided clear warnings on Seroquel’s label about side effects that could lead to diabetes and fully disclosed the drug’s risks to the FDA before and after it was approved.

In Guinn’s case, the 61-year-old Florida resident alleged that she developed diabetes in 2006 after taking the drug for four years and gaining almost 40 pounds, according to court filings. Former Seroquel users contend AstraZeneca downplayed the drug’s weight-gain risks.

Laminack said in a court filing this week that the FDA is demanding that AstraZeneca strengthen Seroquel’s warning label to add information about weight gain and other side effects. The company has declined to comment on its dealings with the FDA.

Guinn was seeking almost $54 million in damages in her lawsuit, including more than $42 million in punitive damages, according to court filings.

In its filings, AstraZeneca countered that Guinn, who attempted to commit suicide in 2002, benefited from taking Seroquel and that she was predisposed to developing diabetes because of her family’s genetic history and her weight.

The case is Guinn v. Astra USA Inc., 07-10291-ACC, U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida (Orlando).

To contact the reporters on this story: Jef Feeley in Wilmington, Delaware, at jfeeley@bloomberg.net; Margaret Cronin Fisk in Southfield, Michigan, at mcfisk@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: January 28, 2009 16:22 EST