When lawsuits involving harmful drugs and defective medical devices begin to emerge across the nation, often, these numerous lawsuits are merged under multidistrict litigation (MDL) in order to improve the efficiency of the legal process and to avoid tying up valuable court resources.
Today our knowledgeable Texas Taxotere lawsuit attorneys of Hotze Runkle PLLC will give you a thorough, yet simple explanation of multidistrict litigation and how it can help you secure the compensation you need if you or a loved one have suffered from excessive tearing (epiphora) as a result of treatment with the chemotherapy drug, Taxotere.
How does multidistrict litigation work?
When numerous lawsuits have been filed by plaintiffs who’ve suffered a similar injury caused by the same defective drug or product, or act of corporate negligence, the various attorneys representing clients in these lawsuits may request that the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation create an MDL to centralize the lawsuits.
It is worth noting that even if lawsuits are consolidated in an MDL, you will still have your individual attorney.
How MDL comes into play is during the pretrial process. The court will bring together a group of lawyers from across the country to coordinate pretrial measures and help handle the litigation accordingly.
What to expect in MDL.
Once an MDL has been allowed, the process will move into the next step: the discovery phase. Throughout discovery, the company being sued may be required to hand over documents with essential information relevant to the case.
It is also important to mention that witnesses may be questioned under oath during depositions and this testimony can be used at trial to support or invalidate allegations in the lawsuit.
The attorneys representing clients in the MDL can also file pretrial motions with the judge when it comes to discovery issues and the adequacy of evidence during trial. The judge may hold hearings to dictate the extent of discovery and rule on any disputes that appear throughout the litigation process.
Resolving the cases.
After the discovery process is finished, the judge can pick out several of the individual lawsuits to go on as bellwether trials – essentially a “test run”– although the outcomes of the bellwether trials will vary from plaintiff to plaintiff. Bellwether trials give both sides the fair opportunity to predict how juries may decide on a lawsuit.
For example, if the defendants lose all or most of the bellwether trials, the company may want to access a global settlement to avoid continued liability (and payouts) in the lawsuits that are left.
If the defendant wins the bellwether trials, the company and their lawyers could choose not to establish a settlement. At any time throughout the MDL, the attorneys may try to negotiate a settlement for all the cases involved in the litigation.
If the settlement negotiations come out as unsuccessful by the conclusion of these trials, the cases are transferred back to the courts where they were originally filed to go forth as individual lawsuits. Your attorney will then make the executive decision to either withdraw your suit or go on to trial.
Trust in the dependable Taxotere lawsuit lawyers at Hotze Runkle PLLC.
If Taxotere or another chemotherapy drug has destroyed, reduced, or damaged your happiness and well-being, then you have the legal right to hold the pharmaceutical company accountable for your suffering.
The product liability lawyers of Hotze Runkle PLLC have successfully represented cancer patients who have faced permanent and irreversible tearing as a result of being treated with chemotherapy drugs.
Do not wait to contact Hotze Runkle PLLC at (877) 919-0830 if you or a loved one are suffering from excessive tearing after being treated with the chemotherapy drug, Taxotere.