La Fountaine et al v. McKesson et al

Filing 24

MDL ORDER TRANSFERRING CASE to the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Signed by the MDL Panel on 4/3/2014. (vlkS, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 4/4/2014)

UNITED STATES JUDICIAL PANEL
on
MULTIDISTRICT LITIGATION

IN RE: AVAND IA MARKETING, SALES PRACTICES
AND PRODUCTS LIABILITY LITIGATION

MDL No. 1871

TRANSFER ORDER

Before the Panel:* Pursuant to Panel Rule 7.1, plaintiffs in the four actions listed on the
attached Schedule A move to vacate our orders conditionally transferring the actions to the Eastern
District of Pennsylvania for inclusion in MDL No. 1871. Responding defendant GlaxoSmithKline
LLC (GSK) opposes the motions.
In their motions to vacate, plaintiffs principally argue that transfer should not take place unless
and until their pending motions for remand to state court are denied. As we frequently have held,
however, the pendency of a remand motion is not, as a general matter, a sufficient reason to delay
or deny transfer. Under Panel Rule 2.1 (d), the pendency of a conditional transfer order does not limit
the pretrial jurisdiction of the court in which the subject action is pending. Between the date a
remand motion is filed and the date the Panel finalizes transfer of the action to the MDL, a court
wishing to rule upon that motion generally has adequate time to do so.
Plaintiffs also argue that they would be inconvenienced by transfer. As we have explained,
however, in deciding issues of transfer under Section 1407, we look to the overall convenience of the
parties and witnesses, not just those of the parties to a given case or cases. See, e.g., In re Watson
Fentanyl Patch Prods. Liab. Litig., 883 F. Supp. 2d 1350, 1351-52 (J.P.M.L. 2012). Furthermore,
because Section 1407 transfer is for pretrial proceedings only, there is usually no need for the parties
and witnesses to travel to the transferee district for depositions or otherwise. See In re MLR, LLC,
Patent Litig., 269 F. Supp. 2d 1380, 1381 (J.P.M.L. 2003).
After considering all argument of counseL we find that these four actions involve common
questions of fact with actions previously transferred to MDL No. 1871, and that transfer will serve
the convenience of the parties and witnesses and promote the just and efficient conduct of the
litigation. Moreover, transfer is warranted for the reasons set out in our original order directing
centralization. In that order, we held that the Eastern District of Pennsylvania was an appropriate
Section 1407 forum for actions involving factual questions "aris[ing] from allegations that certain
diabetes drugs manufactured by GSK - Avandia and/or two sister drugs containing Avandia
(Avandamet and Avandaryl) - cause an increased risk of heart attack and other physical injury, and
that GSK failed to provide adequate warnings concerning that risk." See In re Avandia Mktg., Sales

Judge Marjorie 0. Rendell and Judge Lewis A. Kaplan took no part in the decision of this
matter.

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-2Practices & Prods. Liab. Litig., 528 F. Supp. 2d 1339, 1340-41 (J.P.M.L. 2007). Plaintiffs do not
dispute that their actions share multiple factual issues with those already in the MDL.
IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1407, these actions are
transferred to the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and, with the consent of that court, assigned to
the Honorable Cynthia M. Rufe for inclusion in the coordinated or consolidated pretrial proceedings.

PANEL ON MULTIDISTRICT LITIGATION

Chairman
Charles R. Breyer
Ellen Segal Huvelle

Sarah S. Vance

IN RE: AVAND IA MARKETING, SALES PRACTICES
AND PRODUCTS LIABILITY LITIGATION

SCHEDULE A

Middle District of Alabama
GORE V. GLAXOSMITHKLINE, LLC,
C.A. No. 3:13-00897
Northern District of California
MOREHEAD, ET AL. V. MCKESSON CORPORATION, ET AL.,
C.A. No. 3:13-05842
LA FOUNTAINE, ET AL. V. MCKESSON, ET AL.,
C.A. No. 4:13-05841
STADIG, ET AL. V. MCKESSON CORPORATION, ET AL.,
C.A. No. 4:14-00416

MDL No. 1871