Madill v. A.H. Robins Co.

599 F. Supp. 1351, 1984 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 21067
CourtDistrict Court, D. Maryland
DecidedDecember 20, 1984
DocketNo. M 82-3789
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 599 F. Supp. 1351 (Madill v. A.H. Robins Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Maryland primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Madill v. A.H. Robins Co., 599 F. Supp. 1351, 1984 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 21067 (D. Md. 1984).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM

NORTHROP, Senior District Judge.

On June 1, 1984, this Court granted summary judgment in Pottratz v. Davis, 588 F.Supp. 949 (D.Md.1984) on the grounds that the action was barred by an Oregon statute of repose, ORS § 30.905, and by the doctrine of res judicata. On August 15, 1984, plaintiffs’ motion for reconsideration en banc was denied, and counsel was directed to identify other pending actions in this Court which may be subject to summary judgment in accordance with the June 1, 1984 opinion and order.

On September 13, 1984, by joint memorandum, the defendants designated 28 additional actions in which they argue summary judgment should be entered on the dual grounds that: (1) all claims therein are barred by the Oregon statute of repose, and (2) prior judgments in 15 of these actions also bar the claims under the doctrine of res judicata. Plaintiffs filed a memorandum in opposition and defendants have replied. No hearing is necessary. Local Rule 6.

ín order to facilitate discussion and to promote clarity, the 28 cases are arranged in three groups. The first group, comprising 15 actions, involves plaintiffs who have had summary judgment entered against them in the United States District Court for the District of Oregon on the ground that each claim was time-barred under ORS § 30.905. The second group contains seven cases that, while not barred by res judicata, are nevertheless time-barred under ORS § 30.905. One case, discussed in a footnote in this second group, contains a material issue of fact. The third and final group of cases involves plaintiffs in five actions where there are allegations implicating multiple states and raising questions regarding the applicability of the Oregon statute.

I.

In 15 actions the United States District Court for the District of Oregon entered summary judgment against the plaintiffs on the basis of ORS § 30.905. As the Pottratz opinion noted, the summary judgment entered by Judge Belloni in those cases is a final adjudication on the merits and bars a relitigation of the underlying facts. Pottratz v. Davis, 588 F.Supp. 949, 954 (D.Md.1984) (hereinafter sometimes referred to as the “Pottratz opinion”). This same conclusion applies with equal force to and is completely dispositive of the following actions where summary judgment has already been entered: Tolliver (B 82-3790); Rice (HM 82-3792); Roxberg (B 83-18); McGuffin (K 83-20); Radius (M 83-22); Witcher (HM 83-23); Guariglia (M 83-155); Lauder (B 83-158); McGrath (HM 83-159); Pindar (HM 83-161); Waits (HM 83-164); Laycock-Cowles (HM 83-165); Chandler (M 83-167); Luxford (HM 83-168); and Philpott (JH 83-4215).1

Plaintiffs attempt to avoid res judicata by arguing that their respective facts are different than those in Pottratz, and thus, the Oregon statute of repose is inapplica[1354]*1354ble. Plaintiffs’ Memorandum in Opposition to Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment at p. 5. The answer to this argument is that in each case, plaintiff had an opportunity to litigate her facts before the United States District Court for the District of Oregon. After reviewing those facts, Judge Belloni ruled the actions time-barred under ORS § 30.905 and held: “There are no factors which require a result different from Philpott v. A.H. Robins Co., Inc., [710 F.2d 1422 (9th Cir.1983) ], and Dortch v. A.H. Robins Co., Inc., 59 Or.App. 310, 659 [650] P.2d 1046 (1982).” This res judicata bar precludes plaintiffs from having a second chance at raising an argument concerning the applicability of ORS § 30.905.

By separate Order, summary judgment will be granted in favor of defendants in the above-listed cases.

II.

In Pottratz, this Court concluded that Oregon statute ORS § 30.905 is an ultimate statute of repose and that no cause of action accrues unless a plaintiff learns of a causal connection between her injuries and the Daikon Shield within eight years of its purchase. Pottratz v. Davis, 588 F.Supp. 949, 953 (D.Md.1984). Application of this principle to the seven cases discussed below reveals that all are time-barred by the Oregon statute.

Plaintiffs object to the application of the Oregon statute by arguing that while they may not have made a connection between the Daikon Shield and their injuries within the appropriate time frame, there are allegations of physical injury within the eight-year period set forth in ORS § 30.905. Plaintiffs argue further that these allegations of physical injury distinguish all other cases from Pottratz, and give rise to a factual dispute as to when the injury actually occurred.

The plaintiffs’ argument does not withstand legal analysis. It is true that the below-discussed cases differ from Pottratz in that there are allegations of physical injury occurring prior to the expiration of the eight-year period; occurrence of physical injury, alone, however, is not enough— the injury which must occur within the eight-year period is the legal injury, i.e., “a physical injury which the plaintiff knows or as a reasonable person should know was caused by the defendant.” Dortch v. A.H. Robins Co., Inc., 59 Or. App. 310, 650 P.2d 1046, 1051 (1982); Philpott v. A.H. Robins Co., Inc., 710 F.2d 1422, 1425 (9th Cir.1983). “If plaintiff does not discover the defendant’s causal connection until after the eighth year, no cause of action accrues within eight years and the claim is barred.” Dortch, 650 P.2d at 1052-53; Philpott, 710 F.2d at 1425. Thus, the question is not when a physical injury is alleged to have occurred, but, rather, when the “legal injury” — the causal connection — is alleged to have been discovered.

This is clearly the sense in which “injury” was used in the Pottratz opinion. See, Pottratz v. Davis, 588 F.Supp. 949, 953 (D.Md.1984). Indeed, this conclusion is buttressed by the fact that in both the underlying decisions of Pottratz, Dortch and Philpott, there were allegations of physical injury within the eight-year period. Dortch, 650 P.2d at 1047 and Philpott, 710 F-2d at 1425.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

In Re Dalkon Shield Cases
599 F. Supp. 1351 (D. Maryland, 1984)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
599 F. Supp. 1351, 1984 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 21067, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/madill-v-ah-robins-co-mdd-1984.