The intersection of the PREP Act federal immunity statute and constitutional law continues to shape the landscape of COVID-19 vaccine litigation. In Searcy v. Pfizer, Inc., __ F. Supp. 3d __, 2025 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 186682, 2025 WL 2713736 (M.D. Ala. Sept. 23, 2025), the Middle District of Alabama addressed a wrongful death action
All’s Well That Ends Well? Eh, Fine, If You Say So.
The preemption case du jour is Gregory v. Boston Sci. Corp., 2025 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 164801, 2025 WL 2452382 (E.D.N.Y. Aug. 25, 2025), in which the Eastern District of New York granted summary judgment on federal preemption grounds.
Every time we see a case that does that—upholds preemption on summary judgment—we wonder
Ninth Circuit Gets On Board With The Rule 702 Amendments
Not that long ago (last time we posted), the Sixth Circuit issued an unpublished opinion that affirmed the exclusion of an expert (yay!) but missed the boat on the amendments to Federal Rule of Evidence 702 and its reinforcement of the expert exclusion test (boo!).
Today, we get to tell you about a
Sixth Circuit Confirms That Rule 702 Is Too Steep A Hill To Climb For Materials Science Expert
This post is from the non-Butler Snow side of the blog.
In Hill v. Medical Device Business Services, Inc., No. 24-5797, 2025 U.S. App. LEXIS 17835, 2025 WL 1950300 (6th Cir. July 16, 2025), the Sixth Circuit affirmed an expert exclusion/Rule 702/Don’t Say Daubert decision in a case that we last wrote about
Contributory Negligence, Warnings Causation, Or Both
Legal problems are often multi-faceted. Turned one way, the problem looks like one issue. Turn it around, and a different issue glimmers in your eye.
For example, in Saulsby v. Amphastar Pharm., Inc., __ S.E.2d ___, 2025 N.C. App. LEXIS 420, 2025 WL 1812450 (N.C. App. July 2, 2025), the North Carolina Court of
The PREP Act and Medical Malpractice: Marchese Torres v. Professional Hospital Guaynabo, Inc.
Readers of this blog know that we love preemption in all its forms, including preemption based in the Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness (“PREP”) Act, 42 U.S.C. §247d-6d.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, a needlessly politicized public health emergency, the PREP Act provided important liability protections to health care providers, vaccine manufacturers, and others working hard
Goodbye Lone Pine Orders, Hello Case Vetting Orders?
On the internet, “because reasons” is the default when you don’t have the time or energy to explain why something is correct, but you are sticking with your viewpoint nonetheless.
It is the opposite of what our profession expects from lawyers and the courts: We all are supposed to explain, with crystalline clarity, why our
Not So Lonely Pine?
In our legal world, Lone Pine is not a small California town near the majestic Mt. Whitney and the sobering Manzanar National Historic Site. It is an order directing plaintiffs to come forward with some evidence that they took, or were exposed to, the product they are suing over, and some evidence about their
Georgia (Tort Reform) On Our Minds
When we read the word “Georgia”, we hear it in our heads sung in the voice of the great Ray Charles. Actually, we hear the entirety of the opening lyrics to Georgia on My Mind. Is that just us? Ok, well, anyhoo.
We have been reading a lot about Georgia of late because of
Guest Post – Heads Up: A New Era of Digital Product Liability in the EU
Today’s guest post comes from our Reed Smith colleague Jamie Lanphear on a topic near and dear to the Blog’s heart: The new EU Product Liability Directive. As always, our guest posters deserve 100% of the credit, and any blame, for their posts. But, also as usual, our guest posters deliver the goods, so we