Australian lawyer Michael Magazanik successfully represented thalidomide victims in a class action suit against its Australasian distributors, Distillers. The lead client was Lynette Rowe, born in 1962 in Australia without arms or legs. She won a multi-million dollar settlement in 2012. During the case Michael Magazanik revealed that Distillers let pregnant women keep taking it despite knowing it was causing severe birth defects. One hundred other Australian and New Zealand victims also received pay-outs. Michael Magazanik, a former journalist, has written about the trial and his investigations into the company that made the drug. Silent Shock by Michael Magazanik is published by Text Publishing.
