Without detouring into a larger discussion on the impacts of humans on the environment and our fellow animals, we can say that we are big fans of the other extant great apes. Our puppy’s fascination with nature documentaries has helped pique that interest of late. Our gingery cousin the orangutan, the largest primarily arboreal mammal
Constitutional Challenge To The Vaccine Act Misses The Mark
In simpler times for those of us of a certain age, what we learned in elementary school was often supplemented during Saturday mornings watching cartoons. While you could pick up some information watching Super Friends or Captain Caveman, the catchy songs and minimalist animation of Schoolhouse Rock! really helped to teach children a range
Does The Supreme Court’s Decision On The Purdue Bankruptcy Signal An End To Mass Tort Bankruptcies?
This is from the non-Dechert and non-Reed Smith side of the Blog.
We are not bankruptcy lawyers. So, even though we are discussing a Supreme Court decision on the powers of a bankruptcy court, we are not purporting to be experts in that area. The decision, of course, is Harrington v. Purdue Pharma L.P.
A Unanimous Supreme Court Sits Down A Hippo
Standing should not be a political issue. Ensuring that someone who initiates a lawsuit has enough of a connection to the alleged harm for which they seek redress from a court is a key part of the broader constitutional concept of justiciability. Because federal courts are courts of limited jurisdiction, they cannot decide just any
Device Recall Notice Turned Into Plaintiff Lawyer Advertising?
When we tell people what we do, we often get a response, from lawyers and non-lawyers alike, to the effect of, “so you do class actions.” The somewhat canned response is that “serial product liability litigations” or “mass torts” rarely involve certified classes other than settlement classes because individual factors in personal injury cases almost
A Rare Application Of The Political Question Doctrine
Those of us who took Con Law as first year law students may recall Marbury v. Madison as an early test of the Supreme Court’s place in our nascent republic. Alliteration being a mnemonic device, some may recall that Madison was Secretary of State James Madison and the decision was written by Chief Justice John
Hip Implant Remand Case Mails It In On Expert Motions
We recently recapped the law relating to when experts are allowed to opine on what was in the head of another and how a pending Supreme Court criminal case might affect things. In our area, this issue comes up most frequently in the context of plaintiff experts trying to offer their spin about how the
Questionable California Cough Medicine Consumer Class Lingers
We have seen a number of consumer fraud class action cases brought over a range of fairly ticky tacky issues about OTC drugs and consumer products. California law and courts have been fairly favorable to these cases, which follow a pattern of a test plaintiff seeking to represent some large class because (s)he claims to
The State of State of Mind Testimony by Experts
The issue of the state of mind or intent of a party can play out a number of ways based on the nature of the case. In the criminal context, proof of the mens rea of the defendant is typically an element in the statutory definition of the crime. In a civil contract case, whether
Guest Post – Another Potentially Bubbly Battle Over Hydrogen Peroxide Fizzles Out
Today’s guest post is by Amy McVeigh and Jessica Farmer, who are partners at Holland & Knight. They comment on the demise of another purported class action against a manufacturer of hydrogen peroxide, which is an FDA-regulated over-the-counter (“OTC”) drug. As always our guest posters deserve 100% of the credit (and any blame)