Whitmore v. C R Bard Incorporated

CourtDistrict Court, D. Arizona
DecidedApril 26, 2021
Docket2:17-cv-01353
StatusUnknown

This text of Whitmore v. C R Bard Incorporated (Whitmore v. C R Bard Incorporated) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Arizona primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Whitmore v. C R Bard Incorporated, (D. Ariz. 2021).

Opinion

Case 2:17-cv-01353-DGC Document 4 Filed 04/26/21 Page 1 of 87

1 WO 2 3 4 5 6 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 7 FOR THE DISTRICT OF ARIZONA 8 9 10 IN RE: Bard IVC Filters Products No. MDL 15-02641-PHX-DGC Liability Litigation, 11 AMENDED FINAL SUGGESTION OF REMAND AND TRANSFER ORDER 12 13 14 15 This multidistrict litigation proceeding (“MDL”) involves personal injury cases 16 brought against Defendants C. R. Bard, Inc. and Bard Peripheral Vascular, Inc. 17 (collectively, “Bard”). Bard manufactures and markets medical devices, including 18 inferior vena cava (“IVC”) filters. The MDL Plaintiffs received implants of Bard IVC 19 filters and claim they are defective and caused Plaintiffs to suffer serious injury or death. 20 The MDL was transferred to this Court in August 2015 when 22 cases had been 21 filed. Doc. 1. More than 8,000 cases had been filed when the MDL closed on May 31, 22 2019. Docs. 18079, 18128. 23 Thousands of cases pending in the MDL have settled. See Docs. 16343, 19445, 24 19798, 21167, 21410. The remaining cases no longer benefit from centralized 25 proceedings. Since August 2019, the Court has suggested the remand of nearly 100 cases 26 that were transferred to this MDL by the United States Judicial Panel for Multidistrict 27 Litigation (the “Panel”), and has transferred to appropriate districts more than 2,500 cases 28 that were directly filed in the MDL. See Docs. 19899, 20672, 21462, 21589, 21820. Case 2:17-cv-01353-DGC Document 4 Filed 04/26/21 Page 2 of 87

1 The parties filed updated status reports identifying approximately 400 cases that 2 have not settled and are ripe for remand or transfer, including 19 cases that were 3 voluntarily dismissed under a settlement agreement but where the Plaintiffs have opted 4 out of the settlement. Docs. 21995, 22012. The Court has vacated the dismissal orders in 5 the cases where the Plaintiffs have opted out of the settlement, and those cases have been 6 reinstated in the MDL. Doc. 22034 and amended at Doc. 22035. 7 The cases listed on Schedule A should be remanded to the transferor courts 8 pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1407(a). See Doc. 21995-1. The Court therefore provides this 9 Suggestion of Remand to the Panel. The cases listed on Schedule B, which were directly 10 filed in this MDL, will be transferred to appropriate districts pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 11 § 1404(a). See Docs. 21995-2, 22012-2. To assist the courts that receive these cases, this 12 order will describe events that have taken place in the MDL. A copy of this order, along 13 with the case files and materials, will be available to courts after remand or transfer. The 14 case listed on Schedule C will be unconsolidated from the MDL, will remain in the 15 District of Arizona, and will be assigned to the undersigned judge. See Doc. 21995-2 at 3 16 (Whitmore v. C. R. Bard, Inc., No. CV-17-01353). 17 This MDL has now concluded, as all remaining MDL cases have settled, have 18 19 been dismissed with prejudice, or will be remanded or transferred to their home courts for

20 further litigation consistent with the MDL.

21 I. Suggestion of Remand.

22 A. Remand Standard.

23 The power to remand MDL cases rests solely with the Panel. 28 U.S.C. § 1407(a);

24 see Lexecon Inc. v. Milberg Weiss Bershad Hynes & Lerach, 523 U.S. 26, 28 (1998).

25 The Panel typically relies on the transferee court to suggest when remand is appropriate.

26 See J.P.M.L. Rule 10.1(b)(i); In re Motor Fuel Temperature Sales Practices Litig.,

27 No. 07-MD-1840-KHV, 2012 WL 1963350, at *1 (D. Kan. May 30, 2012). Indeed, the

28 Panel “is reluctant to order a remand absent the suggestion of the transferee judge[.]”

2 Case 2:17-cv-01353-DGC Document 4 Filed 04/26/21 Page 3 of 87

1 J.P.M.L. Rule 10.3(a); see In re Regions Morgan Keegan Sec., Derivative & ERISA 2 Litig., No. 2:09-md-2009-SHM, 2013 WL 5614285, at *2 (W.D. Tenn. Feb. 28, 2013). 3 The transferee court may suggest remand when a case is “ready for trial, or . . . would no 4 longer benefit from inclusion in the coordinated or consolidated pretrial proceedings.” 5 In re Multi-Piece Rim Prods. Liab. Litig., 464 F. Supp. 969, 975 (J.P.M.L. 1979); see 6 In re TMJ Implants Prods. Liab. Litig., 872 F. Supp. 1019, 1038 (D. Minn. 1995). 7 B. The Panel Should Remand the Cases Listed on Schedule A. 8 The primary purposes of this MDL – coordinated pretrial discovery and resolution 9 of common issues – have been fulfilled. All common fact and expert discovery has been 10 completed. The Court has also resolved many Daubert motions and Defendants’ 11 summary judgment motion based on preemption, as well as other summary judgment and 12 in limine motions in the bellwether cases. Six bellwether jury trials were scheduled, three 13 were held, a fourth settled on the eve of trial, one was resolved by summary judgment, 14 and one was dropped when Plaintiffs decided it would not provide helpful information. 15 The pending MDL cases listed on Schedule A have not settled and no longer 16 benefit from centralized proceedings. See Doc. 21995 at 2. The remaining case-specific 17 issues are best left to the transferor courts to resolve. The Court therefore suggests that 18 the Panel remand the cases on Schedule A to the transferor courts for further proceedings. 19 See Doc. 21995-1; see also In re TMJ Implants, 872 F. Supp. at 1038 (suggesting remand 20 of cases that no longer benefited from consolidated pretrial proceedings). 21 II. Transfer Under 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a). 22 A. Transfer Standard. 23 Section 1404(a) provides that “[f]or the convenience of parties and witnesses, in 24 the interest of justice, a district court may transfer any civil action to any other district or 25 division where it might have been brought or to any district or division to which all 26 parties have consented.” 27 /// 28 ///

3 Case 2:17-cv-01353-DGC Document 4 Filed 04/26/21 Page 4 of 87

1 B. The Direct-Filed Cases Listed on Schedule B Will Be Transferred. 2 Not all MDL cases were transferred to the Court by the Panel. Pursuant to Case 3 Management Order No. 4 (“CMO 4”), many cases were filed directly in the MDL 4 through use of a short form complaint. Doc. 363 at 3 (amended by Docs. 1108, 1485). 5 Plaintiffs were required to identify in the short form complaint the district where venue 6 would be proper absent direct filing in the MDL. See id. at 7. CMO 4 provides that, 7 upon the MDL’s closure, each pending direct-filed case shall be transferred to the district 8 identified in the short form complaint. Id. at 3. 9 Pursuant to § 1404(a), the Court will transfer the cases listed on Schedule B to 10 the districts identified in the short form complaints. See Docs. 21995 at 2, 21995-2; see 11 also In re Biomet M2a Magnum Hip Implant Prods. Liab. Litig., No. 3:12-MD-2391, 12 2018 WL 7683307, at *1 (N.D. Ind. Sept. 6, 2018) (transferring cases under § 1404(a) 13 where they would “no longer benefit from centralized proceedings[] and the remaining 14 case-specific issues are best left to decision by the courts that will try the cases”). 15 Defendants’ right to challenge venue and personal jurisdiction upon transfer is preserved. 16 See Docs. 19899 at 4-6, 20672 at 4, 21426 at 4. 17 III. The MDL Proceedings. 18 A summary of the MDL proceedings is provided below to assist courts on remand, 19 if ordered by the Panel, and courts receiving transfers under § 1404(a).

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Related

Medtronic, Inc. v. Lohr
518 U.S. 470 (Supreme Court, 1996)
In Re TMJ Implants Products Liability Litigation
872 F. Supp. 1019 (D. Minnesota, 1995)
In Re Multi-Piece Rim Products Liability Litigation
464 F. Supp. 969 (Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation, 1979)

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Whitmore v. C R Bard Incorporated, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/whitmore-v-c-r-bard-incorporated-azd-2021.