Actos Bladder Cancer Lawsuit Trial Schedule
While the number of individuals throughout the United States who are filing an Actos lawsuit after developing bladder cancer continues to mount, the litigation is moving forward and a scheduling order was issued last month in the federal Actos MDL, setting the first trial dates in November 2014 and January 2015.
All federal Actos bladder cancer lawsuits have been consolidated for pretrial proceedings are part of an MDL, or multidistrict litigation, which is centralized for pretrial proceedings in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana.
Although there are also a number of cases filed in various state courts throughout the United States, most of the cases are pending in the MDL, where there are currently more than 780 lawsuits pending and the number of cases continues to increase each month.
Following a status conference held in the MDL, Judge Doherty issued a detailed scheduling order (PDF) outlining the process for selecting a small group of cases to undergo case-specific discovery, as well as the schedule leading up to two test trials.
Known as “bellwether” trials, the outcomes of these cases are designed to help gauge how juries are likely to respond to similar evidence that will be presented in other cases, potentially helping promote an Actos settlement agreement.
According to the Actos trial scheduling order:
- August 13, 2012: Parties will submit a joint draft discovery protocol
- October 13, 2012: The Court will issue a Bellwether trial protocol
- June 3, 2013: Plaintiffs and Defendants will each select 20 cases to form a pool of cases to undergo case-specific discovery. These cases will be eligible for the Actos bellwether trial dates.
- September 30, 2013: Core discovery is to be completed in the Discovery Pool cases.
- October 16, 2013: Bellwether trial cases and the sequence of trials will be selected
- December 18, 2013: Case specific fact discovery will be completed in the bellwether cases.
- May 22, 2014: Expert depositions are to be completed.
- June 19, 2014: Deadline for filing any Daubert motions challenging expert witnesses or any Summary Judgment motions.
- October 22, 2014: A pretrial conference will be held on the first Actos bellwether case.
- November 3, 2014: The first federal Actos bladder cancer lawsuit will go to trial.
- January 12, 2015: The second Actos lawsuit is scheduled for trial to begin.
ACTOS LAWYERS CONTINUE TO REVIEW LAWSUITS
The lawyers at Saiontz & Kirk, P.A. are continuing to investigate and file new cases for individuals throughout the United States. All cases are reviewed on a contingency fee basis, which means that there are no fees unless a recovery is obtained. However, there is an Actos statute of limitations or deadline in each case, so it is important to review any potential lawsuit as early as possible.
To review a potential claim for yourself, a friend or family member, request a free consultation and claim evaluation.
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