Jenkins et al v. Ethicon, Inc. et al
Filing
31
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER The 30 Motion to Dismiss Without Prejudice is GRANTED in part and DENIED in part; the claims of the plaintiff Sarah R.Jenkins are DISMISSED without prejudice pursuant to Rule 25(a)(1) and PTO # 308. Signed by Judge Joseph R. Goodwin on 10/28/2020. (cc: counsel of record; any unrepresented party) (kew)
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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR
THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF WEST VIRGINIA
CHARLESTON DIVISION
SARAH R. JENKINS and
BILLY RAY JENKINS,
Plaintiffs,
v.
Civil Action No. 2:12-cv-004987
ETHICON, INC., et al.,
Defendants.
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER
On September 24, 2018, a Suggestion of Death was filed by defendants’ counsel
suggesting the death of Sarah Jenkins during the pendency of this civil action. [ECF
No. 22]. On May 16, 2019, defendants filed a Motion to Dismiss for failure to
substitute the deceased party. [ECF No. 30].
Pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 25(a) and Pretrial Order (“PTO”)
# 308 (Requirements for Counsel to Deceased Plaintiffs) filed in In re: Ethicon, Inc.
Pelvic Repair System Products Liab. Litig., 2:12-md-2327 [ECF No. 6218], the time
to substitute a proper party for the deceased party has expired and there has been no
motion to substitute the deceased party.
I.
Background
This action resides in one of seven MDLs originally assigned to me by the
Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation concerning the use of transvaginal surgical
mesh to treat pelvic organ prolapse (“POP”) and stress urinary incontinence (“SUI”).
This particular case involves South Carolina co-plaintiffs, one of whom, Ms. Jenkins,
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was implanted at Springs Memorial Hospital in Lancaster, South Carolina with the
TVT, a mesh product manufactured by Ethicon, Inc. Short Form Compl. [ECF No. 1]
¶¶ 1-11. On September 24, 2018, defendants’ counsel filed a Suggestion of Death
noting that Ms. Jenkins died during the pendency of this action [ECF No. 22].
II.
Legal Standards
a. Rule 25
Rule 25 governs the process for substituting or dismissing a case after a
plaintiff has died. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 25. The rule provides:
If a party dies and the claim is not extinguished, the court
may order substitution of the proper party. A motion for
substitution may be made by any party or by the decedent’s
successor or representative. If the motion is not made
within 90 days after service of a statement noting the
death, the action by or against the decedent must be
dismissed.
Fed. R. Civ. P. 25(a)(1). This rule also states that, “[a] motion to substitute, together
with a notice of hearing, must be served on the parties as provided in Rule 5 and on
nonparties as provided in Rule 4. A statement noting death must be served in the
same manner.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 25(a)(3). The above-mentioned 90-day clock does not
begin to run until the decedent’s successors or representatives are served with a
statement noting death. See Farris v. Lynchburg, 769 F.2d 958, 962 (4th Cir. 1985).
If the successor or representative is party to the action, service must be made on the
party’s attorney. Fed. R. Civ. P. 5(b)(1).
Whether a claim is extinguished is determined by the substantive law of the
jurisdiction in which the cause of action arose. See Robertson v. Wegmann, 436 U.S.
584, 587 n.3 (1991) (explaining that a claim is not extinguished if the jurisdiction
allows the action to survive a party’s death). Traditionally, state statutes expressly
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state whether a claim survives a deceased party and to whom survivorship is allowed.
Id. at 589. If a case includes multiple plaintiffs, the death of one plaintiff does not
cause an abatement of the claims for the remaining parties. See Fed. R. Civ. P.
25(a)(2) (“After a party’s death, if the right sought to be enforced survives only to or
against the remaining parties, the action does not abate, but proceeds in favor of or
against the remaining parties.”).
b. PTO # 308
In Pretrial Order (“PTO”) # 308, the court required that “[f]or any case in which
plaintiff’s counsel subsequently learns of the death of his or her client, plaintiff’s
counsel shall file the suggestion of death within 120 days of counsel’s learning of the
death.” Pretrial Order # 308, p. 3, 2:12-md-2327 [ECF # 6218]. In addition, the court
directed that
within the same 120-day period, plaintiff’s counsel must serve
the suggestion of death on the parties and appropriate
nonparties as described above, and file proof of such service
with the court. The ninety-day substitution period provided by
Rule 25(a) will commence upon the filing and proper service of
the suggestion of death. In the event that plaintiff’s counsel
fails to file the suggestion of death and properly serve it on the
appropriate nonparties, the ninety-day substitution period will
commence 120 days after the entry of this Order or 120 days
after counsel’s learning of the death of his or her client,
whichever is later.
Id. at 3–4.
While this burden is on plaintiffs’ counsel, defendants’ counsel may also file a
suggestion of death on the record. “The filing of the suggestion of death by defendant’s
counsel places plaintiff’s counsel on notice of his or her client’s death, and therefore
commences the 120-day period within which plaintiff’s counsel must serve the
suggestion of death on the appropriate nonparties.” Id. at 4. If they should fail to
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serve the suggestion of death, the ninety-day substitution period commences 120 days
after defendants’ counsel filed the suggestion of death. Id.
c. Choice of Law
If a plaintiff files her claim directly in the MDL in the Southern District of
West Virginia, the court consults the choice-of-law rules of the state where the
plaintiff was implanted with the product. See Sanchez v. Boston Scientific Corp.,
2:12-cv-05762, 2014 WL 202787, at *4 (S.D. W. Va. Jan. 17, 2014) (“For cases that
originate elsewhere and are directly filed into the MDL, the court will follow the
better-reasoned authority that applies the choice-of-law rules of the originating
jurisdiction, which in our case is the state in which the plaintiff was implanted with
the product.”). Ms. Jenkins underwent implantation surgery in South Carolina. Thus,
the choice-of-law principles of South Carolina guide the court’s choice-of-law analysis.
“Under traditional South Carolina choice of law principles, the substantive law
governing a tort action is determined by the state in which the injury occurred.” Lister
v. Nations Bank of Del., N.A., 494 S.E.2d 449, 454 (S.C. Ct. App. 1997). Because the
device was implanted in South Carolina and Ms. Jenkins resided in South Carolina,
it is the state in which the injury occurred. Thus, I apply South Carolina law to this
case.
III.
Analysis
The defendants’ counsel filed a Suggestion of Death on September 24, 2018,
noting that Ms. Jenkins died while this litigation was pending. [ECF No. 22].
Plaintiffs’ counsel has not filed anything on the record indicating an effort to comply
with PRO # 308. Pursuant to Rule 25(a)(1) and PTO # 308 the time for substituting
any party or non-party for the deceased plaintiff has passed.
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Rule 25(a)(1) provides the sole procedural device allowing decedent’s successor
or representative to step into Ms. Jenkins’s shoes and pursue litigation on her behalf.
See Fed. R. Civ. P. 25(a)(1) (“A motion for substitution may be made by any party or
by the decedent’s successor or representative.”). Neither Mr. Jenkins nor any nonparty successor or representative has complied with the substitution requirements of
Rule 25(a)(1) within the time requirements as set for in Rule 25 (a) and PTO # 308.
Accordingly, the court ORDERS that defendants’ Motion to Dismiss [ECF No. 30] is
GRANTED in part insofar as the claims of Sarah R. Jenkins are DISMISSED without
prejudice.
While failure to comply with Rule 25(a)(1) prevents Mr. Jenkins from pursuing
claims on Ms. Jenkins’s behalf, Rule 25(a)(2) does not prevent Mr. Jenkins from
pursuing claims on his own behalf. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 25(a)(2) (“After a party’s death,
if the right sought to be enforced survives only to or against the remaining parties,
the action does not abate, but proceeds in favor of or against the remaining parties.”).
In this matter, only Mr. Jenkins’s claim for loss of consortium remains. Under South
Carolina law, “a loss of consortium claim is not derivative, but is a distinct,
independent cause of action.” Barnette v. Adams Bros. Logging, Inc., 586 S.E.2d 572,
576 n. 4 (2003). Because Mr. Jenkins’s claim for loss of consortium is independent of
Ms. Jenkins’s claim, it cannot be dismissed at this point. Accordingly, defendants’
Motion to Dismiss [ECF No. 30] is DENIED in part to the extent defendants seek an
order dismissing Mr. Jenkins.
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IV.
Conclusion
In summary, it is ORDERED that defendants’ Motion to Dismiss [ECF No. 30]
is GRANTED in part and DENIED in part. The claims of the plaintiff Sarah R.
Jenkins are DISMISSED without prejudice pursuant to Rule 25(a)(1) and PTO # 308.
The court DIRECTS the Clerk to send a copy of this Order to counsel of record
any unrepresented party.
ENTER: October 28, 2020
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