A typical MDL case follows five basic steps:
1. The U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation, a seven-member panel appointed by the chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, decides when federal civil lawsuits should be combined into an MDL.
2. Lawsuits that meet the criteria of the MDL are transferred from the courts where they were originally filed.
3. The judge presiding over the MDL consolidates pretrial procedures, allowing plaintiffs’ attorneys to maximize their resources and speed up the legal process. Procedures combined into one court during an MDL include:
-Pretrial Motions, Pretrial motions are legal documents or arguments that set limits for plaintiffs’ and defendants’ attorneys before trial.
-Discovery, Discovery allows both sides of the case to exchange evidence before trial, including official documents, medical records, witness information and depositions.
-Settlement Conferences, Settlement conferences allow both sides to strike a deal to resolve one or more MDL cases.
4. An MDL settlement is reached based on each injury victim’s individual case. Factors such as age, date of injury, type of injury, and complications related to the injury may affect the amount of the settlement.
5. If a settlement can’t be reached, individual MDL cases are sent back to the courts where they were originally filed for trial.
The drug injury lawyers at Ferrer Poirot Feller handle MDL cases every day, and we’re here to protect your rights from the moment you contact us until the conclusion of your case.