Opinion ID: 593181
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Trying the Conspiracy and Concerted Action Claims First

Text: 152 As just discussed, the district court decided that Phase I of the trial would cover only claims of conspiracy and concerted action. These claims are crucial to the class plaintiffs' overall strategy because they have had considerable difficulty specifically identifying which individual defendant's products appear in their schools. They therefore seek to hold all the defendants jointly liable on the theory that all defendants jointly conspired to conceal the dangers of asbestos and asbestos-containing products, thereby exacerbating the harm caused by any individual defendant's products. It appears that a desire to promote settlement motivated the district court to try this issue first: if the plaintiffs were to prevail in Phase I, the defendants would risk potentially massive liability were they also to lose at subsequent stages of litigation; if, on the other hand, the plaintiffs were to lose in Phase I, their position would be substantially weakened. 153 The gravamen of the joint petition is that the district court lacks jurisdiction to try the issue of conspiracy and concert of action before what petitioners claim is the logically prior issue of liability for the underlying tort. In the petitioners' view, no cognizable case or controversy exists because Phase I would try a hypothetical (or at least unripe) issue in that it would have to assume the outcome of a later trial. The petition also alleges that Phase I would violate the defendants' Seventh Amendment rights because different juries sitting for different phases would be deciding inextricably interwoven factual issues. Finally, the petitioners aver that the district court's plan will hopelessly confuse the jury. 154 In response, the plaintiffs point out that district courts have very broad discretion to order separate trials under Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 23 and 42(b), and that such orders are procedural, not jurisdictional, in nature. The district court, in its response to the petition, further explained that, contrary to the petitioners' intimations, it intends to try the conspiracy/concerted action claims in relationship to an underlying tort--the tort of fraudulent concealment and misrepresentation. Both the district court and the plaintiffs also argue that, because no final decisions have been made regarding what future phases will entail, whether different juries will be empaneled, and what later juries might be told of earlier phases, the petitioners' Seventh Amendment claim is not ripe. 155 Fascinating though these issues appear to be, we will not reach any of them at this time, for we believe that they are no longer ripe in light of our decision to disqualify the district court. The petitioners should make their arguments first to the new presiding judge. He or she may have different views as to what procedure, consistent with constitutional limitations, will work best in trying this case. Depending on his or her ruling, the issues raised in the joint petition may become moot. Accordingly, we will dismiss, without prejudice, the petition asserting these Phase I claims. Should the issues reripen, any aggrieved parties may seek relief at that time by interlocutory appeal or by petition for an extraordinary writ, if either means is appropriate (an issue we similarly do not reach). 156