Common Issues
Defense Strategy
James G. Martingano
MehaffyWeber
Houston, TX
Introduction
• Common Themes
– Single event
– Multiple parties
– Common Sources of Proof
• Common Problems
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Scope
Inherent Delay/Duplication
Discovery
Finality
Main Types
• Class Action
– statutory
• MDL
– statutory
• Mass Tort/Consolidated Cases
– Generally common law
Mass Tort vs. Class Action
• Similarities
– Jurisdiction (State or Federal)
– Focus (case disposition)
• Differences
– Procedure (Federal vs. State)
– Scope (limited vs. general)
Federal Class Actions
• Federal Rule 23
– 1938
• 3 types
– True
– Spurious
– Hybrid
• “Opt-In”
– 1966
• Criteria
– Numerosity
– Commonality
– Typicality
• “Opt-Out”
Class Actions
• Class Action Fairness Act of 2005
– Tort Reform
– Expanded Federal Jurisdiction
– Limits on Coupon Settlements
• Trends
– Personal Injury
– Consumer
– Employment
• State Court
– Range of options
– California – most complex
A Brief History of MDL
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Federal MDLs created in 1968
28 U.S.C. § 1407
“common questions of fact”
“centralization is for the convenience of
the parties and promotes just and
efficient conduct of litigation
Current Data on Federal
MDLs
• 310 MDLs in over 60 Federal Districts
• 240 Judges overseeing one or more
MDLs
• 92,000 pending individual cases
– Of which 48,000 are asbestos
• 15% of the entire Federal Court docket
• Breast Implant
MDL Highlights
– Established Scientific Panel to evaluate Daubert Motion
– Global Settlement
• Welding Rod
– Bellwether Trials
• Chinese Dry Wall
– Consumer and Personal Injury
– Jurisdiction
• Vioxx
– Settlement
• Asbestos
– Still pending
– Largest caseload – 40,000+
• Toyota Litigation
– personal injury and consumer claims
Class Action Highlights
• Wal Mart
– Largest gender discrimination class action
recently certified
– Dukes v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc, Northern
District of California
• AT&T
– Overtime wage claims
– Wlotkowski et al. v. Michigan Bell Telephone
Company, Eastern District of Michigan.
Herb Zarov
• Personal Injury Issues related to
Consolidated Cases
• Case Management Orders
– Defenses
– Strategy
• Hypothetical Case Study
Carla Christofferson
• Punitive Damages in Class Actions
– Exxon Valdez
• Standing Issues
– Tobacco II
Carolyn Frantz
• No-Injury Class Actions
– Teflon
– BPA