This is Michael Brady Lynch, lead trial attorney for The Michael Brady Lynch Firm.
Well, my crystal ball was correct and I am even more pleased with the choice of the JPML for the Pradaxa MDL venue. The good news is that on August 8, 2012, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (JPML) issued an order consolidating all pending and future Pradaxa lawsuits into one MDL in the Southern District of Illinois under the supervision of U.S. District Judge David R. Herndon. Simply put, it is good news for Pradaxa bleeding victims hoping to hold drug maker Boehringer Ingelheim responsible for their injuries.
The JPML, in sending the Pradaxa MDL to East St. Louis, dubbed Herndon an “experienced MDL judge” who “has deftly presided over” multi-district litigation dealing with claims against the Yasmin-line of birth control pills. The Yaz MDL includes more than 9,000 claims. The purpose of the Pradaxa MDL transfer order is to avoid duplication of discovery in Pradaxa litigation, to prevent inconsistent pretrial rulings, and to conserve the resources of the parties, their counsel, and the judiciary. Importantly, transferred Pradaxa bleeding lawsuits not terminated in the transferee district are remanded to their originating transferor districts by the Panel at or before the conclusion of centralized pretrial proceedings.
The Pradaxa MDL is one of the most important pharmaceutical MDL assignments to come about in some time. As I have reported previously, the extent of bleeding dangers posed by Pradaxa approach a national health epidemic. The FDA has found that patients who use Pradaxa are far more likely to have a “serious bleeding event” compared to those who aren’t on the drug.