Share
Seeger Weiss LLP filed a petition for rehearing en banc on October 8, 2020, seeking a reconsideration of a proposed negotiation class for In re National Prescription Opiate Litigation by the Sixth Circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeals.
Coauthored with by co-lead class counsel, Jayne Conroy of Simmons Hanley Conroy LLC, as well as special counsel and class counsel for the proposed class, the petition describes the recent 2-1 decision striking down the proposed class as an “attempt to rewrite the history” of Rule 23 of the Federal rules of Civil Procedure.
“Given the stakes of the underlying public health crisis — and the broader stakes in ensuring proper interpretation of the rules — this is simply too important a case to allow a bare 2-1 panel majority to control the outcome,” the class wrote.
“The plaintiffs are moving forward with the MDL litigation, preparing for trials and exploring and discussing potential resolutions with various defendants,” Conroy and Seeger told Law360 in a recent article on the petition. “Meanwhile, we are seeking en banc review because the negotiation class approved by the MDL court is an important mechanism that deserves the full consideration of the entire court of appeal.”