Opinion ID: 781962
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Dodge II

Text: 9 The jury trial for the next group of plaintiffs (the Jewett group) occurred in October 2000. The district court denied Cotter's motion to exclude several of the Jewett group plaintiffs' experts on the grounds that the testimony was unreliable and inadmissible under Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharms., Inc., 509 U.S. 579, 113 S.Ct. 2786, 125 L.Ed.2d 469 (1993). Because the Jewett group jury found that Cotter was negligent but had not caused any of the plaintiffs' alleged physical injuries or illnesses, the court entered judgment for Cotter on the negligence claims. However, the Jewett group jury did return verdicts in favor of ten plaintiffs for medical monitoring and in favor of eleven plaintiffs on their trespass claims. Although the jury made no finding regarding medical monitoring for two of the plaintiffs, the district court entered judgment totaling $241,300 for medical monitoring for all of the Jewett group plaintiffs. The jury also awarded a total of $42,501 among the plaintiffs on their trespass claims. With interest, the total award was approximately $300,000. 10 In No. 01-1197, Cotter appeals the Jewett group judgment, arguing that: (1) the district court failed to perform its gatekeeper function as required by Daubert and erred by admitting the testimony of certain plaintiffs' experts; (2) even if the expert testimony is admissible, the evidence was legally insufficient to send the negligence claim to the jury because plaintiffs failed to demonstrate either a breach or causation; (3) plaintiffs failed to introduce relevant evidence of trespass damages and the evidence is insufficient to support the trespass verdicts; and (4) the medical monitoring judgments must be reversed under Colorado law and in the absence of a supportable finding of negligent conduct. In No. 01-1236, the plaintiffs cross-appeal the Jewett group verdict on the basis that the district court erred in denying lump sum damages and in its imposition of a medical monitoring trust. The appeals represented by Nos. 01-1197 and 01-1236 are referred to herein as Dodge II.