Liability for Opioid Epidemic – January 12, 2023
January 12, 2023
On December 12, 2022, the judge issued a file direction bifurcating the certification motion. This means that the judge will hear the certification motion in two phases. In the first phase, the judge will consider if the remedies that the plaintiff seeks from the defendants are available in law. In the second phase, the plaintiff will have to show that the lawsuit should proceed as a class action based on evidence and the commonality of the issues that a judge will have to determine in the lawsuit.
The defendants in this action have told us that they plan to bring preliminary motions asking the court to dismiss this action for two reasons: (i) lack of a viable legal theory entitling the plaintiff to compensation, and (i) the court’s alleged lack of jurisdiction to hear the subject matter of the lawsuit. A preliminary motion is when a party in a proposed class proceeding asks a judge to make a decision about the case before the judge decides whether it should continue as a class action. The plaintiff opposes the defendants’ preliminary motions.
As part of the December 12 file direction, the judge has ordered that the preliminary motions will be heard along with phase one of the certification motion.
