GSK reaches agreement in two California lawsuits related to the heartburn drug Zantac

(Reuters) – British pharmaceutical giant GSK said on Wednesday it had reached an agreement to settle two lawsuits filed in California alleging that its withdrawn heartburn drug Zantac caused cancer.

GSK does not admit liability in any of the settlements, it said in a statement.

The drugmaker has settled a number of Zantac-related lawsuits over the past 12 months, including several in California.

California is generally considered a more challenging legal environment for multinational companies because the courts there are considered more plaintiff-friendly.

Former Zantac makers GSK, Pfizer, Sanofi and Boehringer Ingelheim face about 4,000 lawsuits in California state court and about 2,000 lawsuits in various other state courts across the country.

The majority of cases against GSK are brought in Delaware, where the British pharmaceutical company faces more than 70,000 lawsuits.

A judge's decision in Delaware in June to allow the lawsuits to proceed in the state was a blow to GSK, which had appealed the decision.

Last month, the Delaware Supreme Court said it would hear appeals from GSK and the other former Zantac makers.

(Reporting by Yadarisa Shabong in Bengaluru; Editing by Shreya Biswas)