MDL 2342 In Re: Zoloft (Sertraline Hydrochloride) Products Liability Litigation
The Honorable Cynthia M. Rufe, Presiding
| MDL Closed |
| About |
| Pretrial Orders |
| Approved Forms |
| Hearing Transcripts |
| Opinions |
| Deposition Notices |
| Contacts |
The MDL has been closed for the reasons stated in the Court's Order dated December 27, 2017.
| Order Title or Topic | Issued | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Order | Recommending Closing of MDL 2342 | 12/27/2017 |
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This Multidistrict Litigation ("MDL") was created by Order of the United States Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation ("MDL Panel") on April 17, 2012. The typical case involves claims by a plaintiff from anywhere in the United States against defendant Pfizer, Inc., and may name other defendants as well.
In its April 17, 2012 Order, the MDL Panel found that the actions in this MDL "involve common questions of fact, and that centralization in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania will serve the convenience of the parties and witnesses and promote the just and efficient conduct of the litigation."
The MDL Panel noted that the actions "involve allegations that Zoloft, a prescription medication approved for the treatment of depression and other ailments, causes birth defects in children when their mothers ingest the drug while pregnant." Pfizer and the other defendants deny these allegations. The Panel further found that "[c]entralization will eliminate duplicative discovery; prevent inconsistent pretrial rulings; and conserve the resources of the parties, their counsel and the judiciary."
| Order | Order Title or Topic | Issued | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pretrial Order No. 1 | Setting initial conference, inviting applications for liaison counsel and steering committees, establishing initial filing procedures | 05/04/2012 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 2 | Appointing Stephen A. Corr, Esquire as interim liaison counsel for plaintiffs | 05/18/2012 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 3 | Appointing Mark S. Cheffo, Esquire as interim liaison counsel for defendants | 05/18/2012 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 4 | Appointing Stephen A. Corr, Esquire as liaison counsel for plaintiffs | 07/12/2012 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 5 | Appointing Mark S. Cheffo, Esquire as lead and liaison counsel for defendants | 07/12/2012 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 6 | Appointing Plaintiffs' Steering Committee, Plaintiffs' Steering Committee Executive Committee, and Multi-District Coordinator | 07/13/2012 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 7 | Setting status conference for September 10, 2012 | 07/17/2012 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 8 | Entering Protective Order | 07/23/2012 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 9 | Setting status conference for October 17, 2012 | 09/10/2012 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 10 | Setting status conferences | 09/11/2012 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 11 | Case Management Order | 10/17/2012 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 12 | Waiver of Service | 10/17/2012 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 13 | Preliminary Discovery Plan (Plaintiff Fact Sheet attached as Exhibit A) | 10/17/2012 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 14 | Rescheduling status conference from November 19, 2012 to December 3, 2012 | 11/14/2012 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 15 | Joint Discovery and Scheduling Plan | 11/15/2012 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 16 | Master Short-Form Answer; Voluntary Dismissal Requirements | 01/02/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 17 | Selection of Initial Discovery Group | 01/17/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 18 | Rescheduling status conference from March 25, 2013 to April 2, 2013 | 01/17/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 19 | Obligations of PSC Members | 02/20/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 20 | Amending Pretrial Order No. 15, Joint Discovery and Scheduling Plan | 02/25/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 21 | Amending Pretrial Order No. 17, Selection of Initial Discovery Group | 02/25/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 22 | Appointing Andrew Chirls, Esquire as Special Discovery Master | 02/28/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 23 | Amending Pretrial Orders Nos. 15 and 20, Joint Discovery and Scheduling Plan | 04/01/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 24 | Amending Pretrial Orders Nos. 17 and 21, Selection of Initial Discovery Group | 04/01/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 25 | Setting status conferences | 04/05/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 26 | Approving application for fees and costs of Special Discovery Master (March 2013) | 04/26/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 27 | Setting status conferences | 07/18/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 28 | Approving Special Discovery Master's Report and Recommendation No. 2 | 07/18/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 29 | Establishing Common Benefit Fund | 07/19/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 30 | Establishing Deposition Protocol | 07/19/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 31 | Amending Pretrial Order No. 13 with regard to service of Plaintiff Fact Sheets | 07/30/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 32 | Approving application for fees and costs of Special Discovery Master (April - May 2013) | 08/01/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 33 | Approving application for fees and costs of Special Discovery Master (June 2013) | 08/01/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 34 | Approving application for fees and costs of Special Discovery Master (July 2013) | 08/22/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 35 | Approving application for fees and costs of Special Discovery Master (August 2013) | 09/23/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 36 | Modifying Pretrial Order No. 27 with regard to status conference on November 15, 2013 | 09/27/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 37 | Modifying Pretrial Order No. 36 and rescheduling status conference to November 18, 2013 | 10/04/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 38 | Approving application for fees and costs of Special Discovery Master (September 2013) | 10/15/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 39 | Agreed schedule through first trial, and amendment to Pretrial Order No. 23 | 11/18/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 40 | Approving and adopting Reports and Recommendations Nos. 5 and 6 of Special Discovery Master | 11/19/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 41 | Procedures for withdrawal of plaintiffs' counsel | 11/22/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 42 | Setting status conferences | 11/22/2012 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 43 | Approving application for fees and costs of Special Discovery Master (September 2013) | 11/22/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 44 | Trial Pool Selection Protocol | 12/04/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 45 | Approving application for fees and costs of Special Discovery Master (November 2013) | 12/19/2013 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 46 | Approving application for fees and costs of Special Discovery Master (December 2013) | 01/24/2014 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 47 | Amending Joint Pretrial Order No. 13 with Regard to the Designation of the Medical Records Management Company and Establishing Procedures for the Transfer of Files from Medical Research Consultants ("MRC") to RecordTrak) | 02/11/2014 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 48 | Cancelling status conference scheduled for March 3, 2014 | 02/27/2014 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 49 | Approving application for fees and costs of Special Discovery Master (January 2014) | 02/27/2014 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 50 | Setting status conferences | 03/07/2014 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 51 | Amending PTO No. 39 with Regard to Deadlines Related to First Trial | 03/10/2014 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 52 | Clarifying PTO Nos. 39 and 44 with Regard to Trial Selection | 03/14/2014 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 53 | Approving Special Discovery Master's Report and Recommendation No. 7 | 03/17/2014 |
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| Pretrial Order No. 54 | Approving Special Discovery Master's Report and Recommendation No. 8 | 03/17/2014 |
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| Form No. | Form Title or Topic | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Initial Plaintiff Fact Sheet |
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Pursuant to the policy of the Judicial Conference of the United States, transcripts of proceedings in MDL 2342, In Re: Zoloft will be placed on CM/ECF or PACER, unless the presiding judge otherwise directs, and will be made available to the public upon approval as follows:
- A transcript provided to the Court by a court reporter or transcriber will be available at the Office of the Clerk of Court for inspection for a period of 90 days after it is delivered to the Clerk.
- During the 90-day period, a copy of the transcript may also be obtained by purchase from the court reporter or transcriber through the Office of the Clerk of Court. An attorney who obtains the transcript from the Office of the Clerk of Court will be allowed remote electronic access to the transcript through the Court's CM/ECF system.
- After the 90-day period has expired, the filed transcript will be available for inspection and copying in the Office of the Clerk of Court and for download from the Court's CM/ECF system through the PACER system.
Please see the FAQs for additional information concerning transcripts.
Case Management/Electronic Case Files (CM/ECF) contains related information.
Deposition notices are part of the discovery process, where the parties seek to obtain information from each other; in a deposition, the person deposed will answer under oath questions posed by the attorneys. The notices posted below are not filed of record, do not constitute part of the official court docket, and are posted solely as a convenience to the parties and for the reader's information.
| Deposition Notice | Issued | |
|---|---|---|
| Plaintiffs' Notice of Taking Videotaped Deposition of Pfizer, Inc.'s and Greenstone LLC's Person(s) Most Knowledgeable Pursuant to F.R.C.P. 30(b)(6) | 11/15/2012 |
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| Plaintiffs' Notice of Taking Videotaped Deposition of Defendant Greenstone LLC Pursuant to F.R.C.P. 30(b)(6) | 12/21/2012 |
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- Presiding Judge: The Honorable Cynthia M. Rufe
- Please Read Judge Rufe's Policies and Procedures before contacting her chambers.
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Secretary/Civil Deputy: Velma T. White
Courtroom Deputy: Erica Pratt -
United States District Court
Eastern District of Pennsylvania
Courtroom 12A
James A. Byrne U.S. Courthouse
601 Market Street
Philadelphia, PA 19106
Telephone: (267) 299-7490
Fax: (267) 299-5077
- Plaintiffs' Liaison Counsel: Stephen A. Corr, Esq.
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Begley, Carlin & Mandio, L.L.P.
Langhorne, PA 19047
Telephone: (215) 750-0110
Fax: (215) 750-0954
E-mail: Scorr@begleycarlin.com
- Defendants' Lead and Liaison Counsel: Mark S. Cheffo, Esq.
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Quinn, Emanuel, Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP
51 Madison Ave.
22nd Floor
New York, NY 10010
Telephone: (212) 849-7000
- Plaintiffs' Steering Committee Co-Lead Counsel:
- Dianne M. Nast, Esq.
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NastLaw LLC
1101 Market Street
Suite 2801
Philadelphia, PA 19107
Telephone: (215) 923-9300
Fax: (215) 923-9302
- Mark P. Robinson, Jr., Esq.
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Robinson Calcagnie Robinson Shapiro Davis, Inc.
19 Corporate Plaza Drive
Newport Beach, CA 92660
Telephone: (949) 720-1288
Fax: (949) 720-1292