REVIA v. MENTOR CORPORATION et al

Filing 35

ORDER granting 33 Motion for Summary Judgment. Ordered by US DISTRICT JUDGE CLAY D LAND on 09/02/2016. (CCL)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
COLUMBUS DIVISION
IN RE MENTOR CORP. OBTAPE

*

TRANSOBTURATOR SLING PRODUCTS

*

LIABILITY LITIGATION

*

MDL Docket No. 2004
4:08-MD-2004 (CDL)
Case No.
4:13-cv-395 (Revia)

O R D E R
Plaintiff
that

were

Myra

Revia

proximately

alleges

caused

by

that

she

defects

in

suffered

injuries

Defendant

Mentor

Worldwide LLC’s suburethral sling product, ObTape Transobturator
Tape.

Revia also asserts that she suffered injuries because

Mentor did not adequately warn her physicians about the risks
associated with ObTape.

Mentor seeks summary judgment because

Revia did not disclose a specific causation expert to opine that
Revia’s injuries were caused by defects in ObTape or a failure
to warn.

See Lewis Decl. ¶ 6, ECF No. 33-3 in 4:13-cv-395

(“Plaintiff has never identified any purported expert witness to
opine

on

the

Plaintiff’s

issue

ObTape

of

was

specific
the

causation—that

proximate

cause

of

is,

whether

her

claimed

injuries.”).
Once Mentor showed that Revia could not produce admissible
evidence to establish specific causation, Revia had the burden
to point to some evidence to create a genuine fact dispute on
specific causation.

See Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c)(1) (“A party

asserting that a fact . . . is genuinely disputed must support
the assertion by citing to particular parts of materials in the
record[.]”).

Revia did not respond to Mentor’s summary judgment

motion.

Thus, she did not point to any evidence to establish

specific

causation.

claims fail.

Without

such

evidence,

all

of

Revia’s

See, e.g., Starr v. A.J. Struss & Co., No. 01-14-

00702-CV, 2015 WL 4139028, at *6 (Tex. App. July 9, 2015) (“To
establish causation in a personal injury case, a plaintiff must
prove that the conduct of the defendant caused an event and that
this event caused the plaintiff to suffer compensable injuries.”
(quoting Burroughs Wellcome Co. v. Crye, 907 S.W.2d 497, 499
(Tex. 1995)).1

Mentor’s summary judgment motion (ECF No. 33 in

4:13-cv-395) is therefore granted.

IT IS SO ORDERED, this 2nd day of September, 2016.
s/Clay D. Land
CLAY D. LAND
CHIEF U.S. DISTRICT COURT JUDGE
MIDDLE DISTRICT OF GEORGIA

1

Revia is a Texas resident whose ObTape-related treatment occurred in
Texas, and she filed her complaint in this Court. Texas law therefore
applies to Revia’s claims.

2