Jacobs, Dianne v. Owens-Illinois Inc. et al

Filing 35

Order remanding case from MDL. Case reopened. Signed by Jeffery N. Luthi, Clerk of the Panel on 11/3/14. (Attachments: # 1 Suggestion of Remand) (rep)

Case MDL No. 875 Document 9795-1 Filed 10/24/14 Page 61of 15
Case MDL No. 875 Document 9789 Filed 11/03/14 Page of 10

Case MDL No. 875 Document 9795-1 Filed 10/24/14 Page 72of 15
Case MDL No. 875 Document 9789 Filed 11/03/14 Page of 10

Case MDL No. 875 Document 9795-1 Filed 10/24/14 Page 83of 15
Case MDL No. 875 Document 9789 Filed 11/03/14 Page of 10

Case MDL No. 875 Document 9795-1 Filed 10/24/14 Page 94of 15
Case MDL No. 875 Document 9789 Filed 11/03/14 Page of 10

Case MDL No. 875 Document 9795-1 Filed 10/24/14 Page 10 of 15
Case MDL No. 875 Document 9789
Filed 11/03/14 Page 5 of 10

Case MDL No. 875 Document 9795-1 Filed 10/24/14 Page 11 of 15
Case MDL No. 875 Document 9789
Filed 11/03/14 Page 6 of 10

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA
IN RE: ASBESTOS PRODUCTS
LIABILITY LITIGATION (No. VI)

Consolidated Under
MDL DOCKET NO. 875

VARIOUS PLAINTIFFS

Transferred from the Western
District of Wisconsin

v.
Certain "CVLO" cases listed
in Exhibit "A," attached

VARIOUS DEFENDANTS

SUGGESTION OF REMAND
AND NOW, this 20th day of October, 2014, it is hereby
ORDERED that Plaintiffs' motions for a suggestion of remand,
listed in Exhibit "A," attached, are GRANTED. 1
Accordingly, the Court SUGGESTS that the cases listed
in Exhibit "A," attached, should be REMANDED to the United States
District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin for
resolution of all matters pending. 2

Plaintiffs' motions were not opposed.
2

FILED
OCT 2 0 2014
MICHAELE. KUNZ, Clerk
By
Dep. Clerk

On April 5, 2014, Plaintiffs moved for a suggestion of
remand to the transferor court - the Western District of
Wisconsin. Plaintiffs asserted that their claims arose from
asbestos exposure at a manufacturing plant owned by Defendant
Weyerhaeuser Company. Plaintiffs stated that similar cases were
filed in the Western District of Wisconsin and averred that the
instant cases shared similar evidentiary and legal issues as the
cases in the transferor court. Accordingly, Plaintiffs stated
that remanding the cases "would allow for coordinated discovery,
motion practice, and legal rulings in front of the judge where
the cases will be tried." Defendants Weyerhaeuser Company, 3M
Company, and CBS Corporation opposed Plaintiffs' motion. On April
30, 2014, the Court denied Plaintiffs' motion for remand. The
Court noted that remanding the cases at that time would not
promote the just and efficient resolution of their claims.
1

Case MDL No. 875 Document 9795-1 Filed 10/24/14 Page 12 of 15
Case MDL No. 875 Document 9789
Filed 11/03/14 Page 7 of 10

AND IT IS SO ORDERED.

On September 4, 2014, Defendant Weyerhaeuser Company
concurrently filed a Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings and a
Motion to Stay in the instant three cases. Weyerhaeuser asserts
that Plaintiffs' claims are barred by the strict exclusivity
provision of the Wisconsin Worker's Compensation Act.
Weyerhaeuser also asserts that the Western District of Wisconsin
recently dismissed Weyerhaeuser with prejudice from six "nearly
identical companion cases, all involving former Weyerhaeuser
employees." Weyerhaeuser requested that the Court stay all
discovery and proceedings until the Court resolved its motions
for judgment on the pleadings. After a telephone conference,
Judge Strawbridge granted Weyerhaeuser's motion to stay on
September 17, 2014.
On September 26, 2014, Plaintiffs filed renewed motions
for a suggestion of remand. Plaintiffs assert that circumstances
have changed and remand to the transferor court would now promote
the just and efficient resolution of their cases. Particularly,
Plaintiffs assert that in the event there are appeals of this
Court's orders, the appeals should be heard by a single circuit.
Defendant Weyerhaeuser submitted a "Statement of No Opposition"
in response to Plaintiffs' motions to remand. Defendant OwensIllinois also filed a "Statement of No Opposition." No other
defendant responded to Plaintiffs' motions. Accordingly,
Plaintiffs' motions for a suggestion of remand are unopposed.
This MDL Court is charged under 28 U.S.C. § 1407 to
coordinate or consolidate (i.e., simplify) pre-trial issues. The
Western District of Wisconsin is familiar with the issues raised
in these cases and remand at this time would facilitate the just
and efficient resolution of Plaintiffs' claims. For the sake of
consistency, and because Defendants do not oppose Plaintiffs'
motions, the Court deems it appropriate to remand the cases in
their entirety to the transferor court in Wisconsin. Accordingly,
all other pending motions are denied, with leave to refile in the
transferor court after remand. See,~, Faddish v. CBS Corp.,
No. 09-70626, 2010 WL 4159238 (E.D. Pa. Oct. 22, 2010) (Robreno,
J.) .

2

Case MDL No. 875 Document 9795-1 Filed 10/24/14 Page 13 of 15
Case MDL No. 875 Document 9789
Filed 11/03/14 Page 8 of 10

Exhibit A
E.D. Pa. Case No.

W.D. Wisc. Case No.

Case Name

ECF Mtn No.

13-60011

12-00899

Jacobs

110

13-60013

13-00250

Zickert

79

13-60019

13-00459

Heckel

91

3

Case MDL No. 875 Document 9795-1 Filed 10/24/14 Page 14 of 15
Case MDL No. 875 Document 9789
Filed 11/03/14 Page 9 of 10

SUGGESTION OF REMAND MEMORANDUM
Updated April 7, 2014

To: Transferor Judge
From: Judge Eduardo C. Robreno, Presiding Judicial Officer, MDL 875
Re: Asbestos case that has been transferred to your court

Status of the case that has been transferred from the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
This case has been transferred back to the transferor court, from the MDL 875 Court in the
Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
Cases that are remanded to transferor courts are ordinarily ready for trial, pursuant to this Court's
Administrative Order No. 18 (see http://www.paed.uscourts.gov/mdl875d.asp).
Specific information regarding the history of a specific case while it was in the MDL 875 Court
can be found in the Suggestion of Remand (above) that the MDL Court submitted to the Judicial
Panel on Multidistrict Litigation in connection with its Order.

History of MDL 875, In re: Asbestos Products Liability Litigation
MDL 875, In re: Asbestos Products Liability Litigation, involves issues relating to personal
injury damages caused by asbestos products. It currently consists of about 3,000 cases transferred
by the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation, which has been transferring cases to the Eastern
District of Pennsylvania since 1991. Each case typically consists of claims by multiple plaintiffs
against multiple defendants. Since its inception, the litigation has involved more than 100,000
cases and up to ten million claims, including land-based and maritime claims ("MARDOC").
Beginning with Administrative Order No. 12 (see http://www.paed.uscourts.gov/mdl875d.asp) in
2008, the Court initiated an aggressive, pro-active policy to facilitate the processing of cases. The
policy involves giving newly transferred cases scheduling orders; setting cases for settlement
conferences; having motion hearings; and remanding trial-ready cases to transferor courts, or, in
the alternative, holding trials in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (if so requested by the
parties).

Resources available for transferor courts on the MDL 875 website
More information about the history of MDL 875 can be found on the Eastern District of
Pennsylvania's MDL 875 website athttp://www.paed.uscourts.gov/mdl875a.asp. Additionally,
all Administrative Orders issued in this litigation (including current Orders and those no longer
in effect) can be found at http://www.paed.uscourts.gov/mdl875d.asp.
Also on the website is an Excel spreadsheet of all decisions issued by the Presiding Officer on
4

Case MDL No. 875 Document 9795-1 Filed 10/24/14 Page 15 of 15
Case MDL No. 875 Document 9789 Filed 11/03/14 Page 10 of 10

substantive and procedural matters since 2008 (see http://www.paed.uscourts.gov/mdl875n.asp).
This spreadsheet is updated regularly, and it can be sorted by jurisdiction, case caption, subject
matter, party name, etc. It is also word searchable. The MDL-875 Court intends this spreadsheet
to be a helpful resource for transferor courts addressing issues similar to those already addressed
by the MDL-875 Court.
Other options available to assist the Transferor Court with legal research include searchable
databases created by LexisNexis and Westlaw. Directions on how to access these databases can
be found on http://www.paed.uscourts.gov/mdl875n.asp.
Contact information for the MDL 875 Court

The MDL 875 Court is ready, willing and able to assist the transferor court with any matters
relating to the transfer of the case or any substantive or procedural issues that may arise.
You may contact the Presiding Judicial Officer ([e-mail]),
the MDL 875 law clerk ([e-mail] or [phone]), or the
Clerk's Office ([phone])) for further assistance.
Intercircuit Assignment Committee

The Intercircuit Assignment Committee of the Judicial Conference, under the leadership of Judge
Royce C. Lamberth of the District of Columbia, can assist in the identification and assignment of
a senior judge from another District who is ready, willing and able to preside over the trial of this
case. If appropriate, please contact Judge Lamberth at Royce C. [e-mail] or
[phone].
Special Master

The Court has designated Professor Francis McGovern to act as special master for remand
purposes to assist the trial and/or transferor court in any manner deemed appropriate by those
courts to insure the smooth and consistent remand of cases from MDL 875. If appropriate, please
contact Professor McGovern at [e-mail].
Additional information pertaining to MDL 875

The Presiding Judicial Officer has written an extensive article on the history and current status of
MDL 875 which may be helpful to the transferor judge. See Hon. Eduardo C. Robreno, The
Federal Asbestos Product Liability Multidistrict Litigation (MDL 875): Black Hole or New
Paradigm?, 23 Widener L.J. 97 (2014). The article can be found on Westlaw, or a PDF copy of
the article can be provided by contacting the MDL 875 law clerk.

5