Daniel Fisher News
Trial lawyers find unusual allies in fight against arbitration: Conservative state treasurers
WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - Class action lawyers who see arbitration as a mortal threat to their business have found unlikely allies among some of the nation’s most conservative state officials.
Time running out for lawyers suing opioid industry to show specific proof
The judge overseeing multidistrict litigation against the opioid industry has given plaintiffs a stark choice on a tight deadline: Hand over evidence of specific prescriptions they believe were improper or lose the right to present such evidence forever.
Opioid lawsuits should proceed, magistrate tells MDL judge
A magistrate judge recommended that a bellwether trial against the opioid industry proceed, rejecting nearly all the arguments presented by manufacturers, distributors and retailers in their motions to dismiss hundreds of lawsuits accusing them of causing a national crisis.
New state AG opioid lawsuits show diverging strategies, outside counsel pay scales
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (Legal Newsline) - The latest wave of state lawsuits over the opioid crisis illustrates sharp differences emerging in how governments litigate these cases, both in whom they choose to sue and whether private lawyers stand to get a piece of the action.
Judge sees litigation as only an `aid in settlement discussions’ for opioid lawsuits
CLEVELAND (Legal Newsline) - The judge overseeing hundreds of lawsuits against the opioid industry that have been consolidated in federal court said some trials may occur but that litigation is “not a substitute or replacement” for his preferred goal of a comprehensive settlement.
Judge in massive opioid case watching plaintiff lawyer spending, orders them to fly coach
CLEVELAND (Legal Newsline) - The judge overseeing multidistrict litigation against the opioid industry ordered plaintiffs’ attorneys to keep monthly records of the time they spend on their cases down to a tenth of an hour and imposed strict rules on who can collect fees, in an effort to prevent the excesses that have drawn criticism in other class actions and mass tort cases.
Self-driving cars, thinking machines will test limits of tort law
SEATTLE (Legal Newsline) - Self-driving cars, machines that teach themselves how to operate and home digital assistants that can enter into legally binding contracts are all either on the market now or soon will be. So the next question is: Whom do you sue when they run amok?
Opioid judge orders trials, DEA records as 'step toward defeating the disease'
CLEVELAND (Legal Newsline) - The federal judge overseeing hundreds of lawsuits against opioid manufacturers and distributors has ordered a series of bellwether trials starting in 2019 to test disputed legal theories and facts before live juries, all but admitting defeat in his initial goal of crafting a global settlement and solution to the opioid crisis this year.
N.Y. opioid litigation won't be stayed; Lawyers seeking 1,000 more county-plaintiffs
RIVERHEAD, N.Y. (Legal Newsline) - A New York judge has refused to stay lawsuits by a number of New York counties against opioid manufacturers and distributors, rejecting arguments that the Food and Drug Administration hasn’t yet determined whether narcotic painkillers are unnecessarily dangerous - a central question in any litigation.
Citing 'barriers' to settlement, judge orders opioid foes to prepare for trial
CLEVELAND (Legal Newsline) - The judge overseeing hundreds of lawsuits against opioid manufacturers and distributors ordered both sides to prepare for trials, citing unspecified “barriers” to a global settlement that became apparent after a conference Tuesday.
Plaintiff lawyers see nationwide settlement as only end for opioid lawsuits
SAN FRANCISCO (Legal Newsline) - Plaintiff lawyers meeting in San Francisco last week for a conference on opioid litigation acknowledged that the hundreds of lawsuits they have filed in state and federal court will be difficult to resolve without an unprecedented national settlement whose mechanics are still difficult to predict.
Opioid judge orders companies to pay bulk of special master costs because they have 'greater discretionary funding'
CLEVELAND (Legal Newsline) - The judge overseeing hundreds of lawsuits against opioid manufacturers and distributors has ordered defendant companies to pay three-quarters of the costs of special masters who are overseeing settlement negotiations.
Opioid judge doesn't want media to know details of settlement talks
CLEVELAND (Legal Newsline) - The judge overseeing multidistrict litigation against opioid manufacturers and distributors has named the teams of lawyers who will try to negotiate a settlement of hundreds of federal lawsuits - a complex task given parallel investigations and litigation by state attorneys general and potentially conflicting goals of private attorneys and their government counterparts.
Usual Suspects: Lawyers used to getting their way in MDL process to lead opioid litigation
CLEVELAND (Legal Newsline) - There will be a lot of familiar faces in U.S. District Judge Dan Polster’s courtroom in Cleveland on Jan. 31, when lawyers gather for a hearing on multidistrict litigation against the nation’s opioid manufacturers and distributors.