BNSF Railway Company et al v. The Center for Asbestos Related Disease, Inc.

Filing 223

ORDER: There shall be no further contact of jurors from counsel for either party. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that jurors will be contacted by the Court and informed that they are not to respond to the letter from CARD dated on or about June 30, 2023, inquiring into the jury's deliberations. Signed by Judge Dana L. Christensen on 7/6/2023. (Attachments: # 1 Redacted Letter) (ASG)

Case 9:19-cv-00040-DLC Document 223 Filed 07/06/23 Page 1 of 3

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF MONTANA
MISSOULA DIVISION
BNSF RAILWAY COMPANY, on
behalf of THE UNITED STATES OF
AMERICA,

CV 19–40–M–DLC

ORDER

Plaintiff,
vs.
THE CENTER FOR ASBESTOS
RELATED DISEASE,
Defendant.

The jury returned a verdict in this matter on June 28, 2023, finding that
CARD had committed 337 violations of the False Claims Act and awarding
$1,081,265.00 in damages. (Doc. 216.) On June 29, the Court was contacted via
email by counsel for BNSF regarding whether there are any prohibitions on
contacting jurors post trial. The Court responded to BNSF’s inquiry and included
counsel for CARD in its response. The Court informed both parties that at the end
of the trial the Court had advised the jurors that they had no obligation to discuss
the case with any attorney that may contact them, and if they declined, and an
attorney (or a person acting on his behalf) persisted, they should contact me
directly. The Court also explained that jurors are prohibited from discussing any
of the matters identified in Rule 606(b) of the Federal Rules of Evidence.
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Case 9:19-cv-00040-DLC Document 223 Filed 07/06/23 Page 2 of 3

On July 5, it came to the Court’s attention that counsel for CARD had sent
letters to jurors on or about June 30 asking, “how you and your fellow jurors
arrived at the number of violations and how you calculated damages.” (See
attached redacted letter.) The letter also informs the jurors that the next step in this
matter is to determine statutory penalties to be assessed against CARD—
information which had not been shared with the jurors during trial to avoid any
undue influence that the threat of penalties may have had on their verdict.
Rule 606(b) prohibits juror testimony “[d]uring an inquiry into the validity
of a verdict” regarding “any statement made or incident that occurred during the
jury’s deliberations; the effect of anything on that juror’s or another juror’s vote; or
any juror’s mental processes concerning the verdict or indictment.” FED. R. EVID.
606(b). This rule reflects a desire to protect jury deliberations from intrusive
inquiry and promote the finality of judgments. See Tanner v. United States, 483
U.S. 107, 119 (1987) (explaining the policy rationale behind Rule 606(b)). The
Court warned counsel for both parties that questioning of jurors on matters that fell
within Rule 606(b) was prohibited.
Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED that there shall be no further contact of
jurors from counsel for either party.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that jurors will be contacted by the Court and
informed that they are not to respond to the letter from CARD dated on or about
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Case 9:19-cv-00040-DLC Document 223 Filed 07/06/23 Page 3 of 3

June 30, 2023, inquiring into the jury’s deliberations.
DATED this 6th day of June, 2023.

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