Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-ared-4_03-cv-01507/USCOURTS-ared-4_03-cv-01507-169/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 365
Nature of Suit: Personal Injury - Product Liability
Cause of Action: 28:1332 Diversity-Product Liability

---

UNITED STATES JUDICIAL PANEL

on 

MULTIDISTRICT LITIGATION

IN RE: PREMPRO PRODUCTS LIABILITY LITIGATION

Sherrie Lewis v. Kmart Corp., et al., )

N.D. Georgia, C.A. No. 1:09-1448 ) MDL No. 1507

TRANSFER ORDER WITH SIMULTANEOUS

SEPARATION AND REMAND

Before the entire Panel: Plaintiff in an action pending in the Northern District of Georgia

has moved, pursuant to Rule 7.4, R.P.J.P.M.L., 199 F.R.D. 425, 435-36 (2001), to vacate the

respective portion of our order conditionally transferring this action (Lewis) for inclusion in MDL

No. 1507. Defendant K-Mart Corp. (K-Mart) and third-party defendants PDX, Inc. (PDX) and

National Health Information Network, Inc. (National Health) have also moved for the same relief.

After considering all argument of counsel, we find that Lewis involves, to some extent,

common questions of fact with actions in this litigation previously transferred to the Eastern District

of Arkansas, and that transfer of the action to the Eastern District of Arkansas for inclusion in MDL

No. 1507 will serve the convenience of the parties and witnesses and promote the just and efficient

conduct of the litigation. We further find that transfer of Lewis is appropriate for reasons that we

set out in our original order directing centralization in this docket. In that order, we held that the

Eastern District of Arkansas was a proper Section 1407 forum for actions brought by persons

allegedly injured by Wyeth’s Prempro, a hormone combination of estrogen and progestin used in the

treatment of menopausal symptoms. See In re Prempro Products Liability Litigation, 254 F.Supp.2d

1366 (J.P.M.L. 200). 

Since we initially centralized this litigation, it has evolved to include actions involving other

Wyeth hormone replacement therapy (HRT) products, as well as HRT products manufactured and

distributed by other pharmaceutical companies. The Lewis action falls into the latter category.

Plaintiff alleges, inter alia, that she developed breast cancer from taking Essian HS, a generic HRT

drug manufactured by defendant Prasco Laboratories (Prasco), and Syntest HS, a generic HRT drug

manufactured by defendant Syntho Pharmaceuticals, Inc (Syntho). Those drugs and those defendants

are involved in at least two actions already transferred to MDL No. 1507. Moreover, Essian HS and

Syntest HS are generic versions of Estratest, a HRT drug manufactured by Solvay Pharmaceuticals,

Inc. (Solvay). Claims concerning Estratest are already at issue in the MDL, and Solvay is a defendant

in several hundred transferred actions. Given these circumstances, we conclude that plaintiff’s

claims against Prasco and Syntho should be included in the MDL. 

Case 4:03-cv-01507-BRW Document 2299 Filed 06/03/10 Page 1 of 6
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With respect to plaintiff’s claims against K-Mart, K-Mart’s third-party claim for

indemnification against PDX and National Health, and the counterclaims of PDX and National

Health, however, we find that these claims are better left with the transferor court. These claims

primarily involve allegations that K-Mart misled plaintiff regarding the status of FDA approval of

the two HRT drugs, and thus they are only peripherally connected to the claims pending in the MDL

No. 1507. Moreover, none of these defendants are currently involved in the MDL. 

IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1407, this action is transferred

to the Eastern District of Arkansas and, with the consent of that court, assigned to the Honorable

William R. Wilson, Jr., for inclusion in the coordinated or consolidated pretrial proceedings

occurring there in this docket.

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that plaintiff’s claims against K-Mart, K-Mart’s third-party

claim against PDX and National Health, and the counterclaims of PDX and National Health are

separated and remanded, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1407(a), to the Northern District of Georgia.

PANEL ON MULTIDISTRICT LITIGATION

 

 John G. Heyburn II

 Chairman

Robert L. Miller, Jr. Kathryn H. Vratil

David R. Hansen W. Royal Furgeson, Jr.

Frank C. Damrell, Jr. Barbara S. Jones

Case 4:03-cv-01507-BRW Document 2299 Filed 06/03/10 Page 2 of 6
UNITED STATES JUDICIAL PANEL

on

MULTIDISTRICT LITIGATION

CHAIRMAN:

John G. Heyburn II

United States District Court

Western District of Kentucky

MEMBERS:

Robert L. Miller, Jr.

United States District Court

Northern District of Indiana

Kathryn H. Vratil

United States District Court

District of Kansas

David R. Hansen

United States Court of Appeals

Eighth Circuit

W. Royal Furgeson, Jr.

United States District Court

Northern District of Texas

Frank C. Damrell, Jr.

United States District Court

Eastern District of California

Barbara S. Jones

United States District Court

Southern District of New York

DIRECT REPLY TO:

Jeffery N. Lüthi

Clerk of the Panel

One Columbus Circle, NE

Thurgood Marshall Federal

Judiciary Building

Room G-255, North Lobby

Washington, D.C. 20002

Telephone: [202] 502-2800

Fax: [202] 502-2888

http://www.jpml.uscourts.gov

June 3, 2010

James W. McCormack, Clerk

402 U.S. Courthouse

600 West Capitol Avenue

Little Rock, AR 72201-3325

Re: MDL No. 1507 -- IN RE: Prempro Products Liability Litigation

Dear Mr. McCormack:

Attached is a certified copy of a transfer order issued today by the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict

Litigation in the above-captioned matter. The order is directed to you for filing. Rule 1.5 of the Rules of

Procedure of the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation, , 199 F.R.D. 425, 428 (2001), states "A transfer or

remand pursuant to 28 U.S. C. § 1407 shall be effective when the transfer or remand order is filed in the office

of the clerk of the district court of the transferee district." 

Today we are also serving an information copy of the order on the transferor court(s). The Panel's

governing statute, 28 U.S.C. §1407, requires that the transferee clerk "transmit a certified copy of the Panel's

order to transfer to the clerk of the district court from which the action is being transferred [transferor court]."

Rule 1.6(a), pertaining to transfer of files, states "the clerk of the transferor district court shall forward

to the clerk of the transferee district court the complete original file and a certified copy of the docket sheet for

each transferred action." With the advent of electronic filing, many transferee courts have found that it

is not necessary to request the original file. Some transferee courts will send their certified copy of the

Panel order with notification of the newly assigned transferee court case number and inform the

transferor courts that they will copy the docket sheet via PACER. Others may request a certified copy

of the docket sheet and a copy of the complaint (especially if it was removed from state court). You

should be specific as to the files you would like to receive from the transferor courts and if no files will

be necessary, you should make that clear. Therefore, Rule 1.6(a) will be satisfied once a transferor court

has complied with your request.

Case 4:03-cv-01507-BRW Document 2299 Filed 06/03/10 Page 3 of 6
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The Panel Service list is attached.

Very truly,

Jeffery N. Lüthi

Clerk of the Panel

By 

 Darion Payne

 Case Administrator

Attachments (Transfer Order is a Separate Document)

cc: Transferee Judge: Judge William R. Wilson, Jr.

JPML Form 29

Case 4:03-cv-01507-BRW Document 2299 Filed 06/03/10 Page 4 of 6
 Page 1 of 2

IN RE: PREMPRO PRODUCTS LIABILITY 

LITIGATION MDL No. 1507

PANEL SERVICE LIST

John P. Borger 

FAEGRE & BENSON LLP

2200 Wells Fargo Center

90 South Seventh Street

Minneapolis, MN 55402-3901

jborger@faegre.com 

 

Michael P. Bruyere

FIELDS HOWELL

191 Peachtree Street NE

Suite 4600

Atlanta, GA 30303

mbruyere@fieldshowell.com 

 

Paul N. Farquharson 

SEMMES BOWEN & SEMMES PC

25 South Charles Street, Suite 1400

Baltimore, MD 21201

pfarquharson@semmes.com 

 

Mary C. Gill 

ALSTON & BIRD LLP

1201 West Peachtree Street

One Atlantic Center

Atlanta, GA 30309-3424

mary.gill@alston.com 

 

F. Lane Heard, III

WILLIAMS & CONNOLLY LLP

Edward Bennett Williams Building

725 12th Street, N.W.

Washington, DC 20005-5901

lheard@wc.com 

 

William G. Holt 

GARY EUBANKS & ASSOCIATES

Post Office Box 3887

Little Rock, AR 72203-3887

HoltG@garyholtlaw.com 

 

Brendan G. Krasinski 

ALSTON & BIRD LLP

1201 West Peachtree Street

One Atlantic Center

Atlanta, GA 30309-3424

brendan.krasinski@alston.com

Patrick Lysaught 

BAKER STERCHI COWDEN & RICE LLC

2400 Pershing Road, Suite 500

Kansas City, MO 64108-2504

lysaught@bscr-law.com 

 

Jay Michael O'Brien 

STRAWINSKI & STOUT PC

3340 Peachtree Road, NE

Suite 1445

Atlanta, GA 30326

jmo@strawlaw.com 

 

Lyn Peeples Pruitt 

MITCHELL WILLIAMS SELIG 

GATES & WOODYARD PLLC

425 West Capitol Avenue, Suite 1800

Little Rock, AR 72201

lpruitt@mwlaw.com 

 

Alan E. Rothman 

KAYE SCHOLER LLP

425 Park Avenue

New York, NY 10022-3598

arothman@kayescholer.com 

 

Gina M. Saelinger 

ULMER & BERNE LLP

600 Vine Street, Suite 2800

Cincinnati, OH 45202

gsaelinger@ulmer.com 

 

Blake J. Smith 

NELSON & LORD

688 Walnut Street, Suite 103

Macon, GA 31201

bsmith@nelsonsmith.com 

Case 4:03-cv-01507-BRW Document 2299 Filed 06/03/10 Page 5 of 6
 Page 2 of 2

MDL No. 1507 -- Panel Service List (Continued)

Nicole Wolfe Stout 

STRAWINSKI & STOUT PC

3340 Peachtree Road, NE

Suite 1445, Tower Place 100

Atlanta, GA 30326

nws@strawlaw.com 

Craig Alan Webster 

WEBSTER FIRM

1770 Indian Trail Road

Suite 200

Norcross, GA 30093

cwebster@twflaw.com 

Case 4:03-cv-01507-BRW Document 2299 Filed 06/03/10 Page 6 of 6