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

Heading: Dodge III

Text: 11 Following the Jewett trial, the district court consolidated all remaining Dodge plaintiffs, including the remanded plaintiffs from Dodge I, into one large plaintiff group (the Blue group). The Blue group plaintiffs moved the district court to allow the use of offensive collateral estoppel of the negligent conduct issue decided in the Dodge II trial. As in Dodge I, the district court granted the Blue group's motion and barred Cotter from contesting its negligence vis-à-vis the Blue group plaintiffs. The Blue group plaintiffs offered expert witness testimony; all but one of these experts were the same as those used in the Dodge II trial. Cotter's motion for summary judgment on the basis that plaintiffs could not satisfy their burden of demonstrating required levels of exposure to hazardous substances was denied, as was Cotter's motion to exclude expert testimony pursuant to Daubert. 12 In 2001, the Blue group jury returned verdicts for all but one plaintiff. In particular, this jury found that Cotter was a cause of unspecified injuries and/or illnesses to plaintiffs. Accordingly, the district court entered judgments in favor of 20 plaintiffs for negligence for a total award of over $12.5 million, in favor of 13 plaintiffs for trespass for a total award of over $1.5 million, and in favor of 27 plaintiffs for negligence requiring medical monitoring. The jury also awarded over $2.2 million in punitive damages to 26 plaintiffs. With costs and interest, the total award from the Blue trial exceeds $43 million. Aplt. App. at 017397-403. 13 In No. 01-1591, Cotter appeals the Blue group judgment, arguing that: (1) the district court erred by allowing the use of offensive collateral estoppel on the negligence issue; (2) the district court erred by admitting the testimony of certain plaintiffs' experts; (3) 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 causation; (4) the medical monitoring judgments must be reversed under Colorado law and in the absence of a supportable finding of negligence; (5) plaintiffs failed to introduce relevant evidence of trespass damages and that the evidence is insufficient to support the trespass verdicts; (6) the district court erred by allowing plaintiffs' biographical profiles into evidence; and (7) the district court erred by refusing to admit certain exhibits. In No. 02-1008, the plaintiffs cross-appeal the Blue group verdict on the basis that the district court erred in denying lump sum damages as to medical monitoring. The appeals represented by Nos. 01-1591 and 02-1008 are referred to herein as Dodge III. The plaintiffs in Dodge III have also moved this court to dismiss Cotter's appeal for lack of appellate jurisdiction, claiming that Cotter filed an untimely notice of appeal in No. 01-1591.