Opinion ID: 3014823
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Elevated Pulmonary Hypertension

Text: The second group of Appellants, those with PH, also cannot bring a collateral attack on the class settlement at this stage in the litigation. This is for the same fundamental reason as the downstream opt outs – the issues raised here were raised by class members at the fairness hearing and rejected by the District Court. The District Court heard extensive testimony concerning various conditions and their connection to diet drug use and approved the exclusion of PH from the Settlement Agreement. PTO 1415 Memorandum at 29-41. In fact, the District Court specifically treated PH as a symptom of many heart conditions, rather than a separate 22 injury caused by diet drugs in its detailed discussion of the medical evidence. PTO 1415 Memorandum at 28-9, 32, 37, 39. Further, the District Court approved the Settlement Agreement’s definition of PPH, a serious lung disease that these Appellants argue is based on a flawed definition that wrongly excludes them. PTO 1415 Memorandum at 37-41. As discussed above, the District Court heard and rejected arguments that representation was not adequate for those with differing conditions. PTO 1415 Memorandum at 113-5. The District Court specifically found that class members had “meaningful opt out rights,” unlike the class members in Amchem. PTO 1415 Memorandum at 114. In addition, beyond the District Court’s consideration of these issues at the fairness hearing, the District Court has already heard and rejected collateral challenges by various class members based on these same arguments. See PTO 2383 23 (appointing special master to administer screening of class members who meet requirements for PPH delineated in PTO 1415), PTO 2623 (concluding that moving class members do not meet definition of PPH, denying argument that definition of PPH should be expanded, and finding that class members’ due process rights were not violated by the Settlement Agreement). Thus, the District Court not only addressed the issues raised here by the PH Appellants at the fairness hearing, but has also subsequently addressed the adequacy of their representation and due process protections. As such, this group of Appellants has received the due process protections necessary for them to be bound by the class settlement and cannot relitigate those issues here.