Insights & Events

Hollingsworth LLP partner Gary Feldon was interviewed by Law.com for a recent article taking a deep dive into the statistics of MDLs, what those statistics really mean, and the potential impact of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 16.1.

According to fiscal year 2023 statistics from the Administrative Office of U.S. Courts, and the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation, multidistrict litigation currently makes up 65% of the federal civil caseload, compared to 38% a decade ago. While some claim the numbers are skewed by 3M’s earplug docket, the data has been at the center of the debate over multidistrict litigation’s impact on the federal judiciary.

“’The reason you’re hearing a lot about the size and volume of MDL cases on the federal docket is because size drives a lot of the current problematic trends that we are seeing in MDLs,’ said Gary Feldon, of Hollingsworth in Washington D.C.”

Feldon attributed much of the growth to litigation financing, which is moving into multidistrict litigation. “The total number of cases centralized in MDLs will fluctuate over the short time, but if you look at the underlying trends, both decisions and the trend of third-party litigation funding driving this high volume approach to mass tort litigation, the overall trend will continue to assert itself, and you’ll see new high water marks set.”

Although not all multidistrict litigation concerns were addressed by Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 16.1, the rule could end up reducing the number of unsubstantiated claims. But that does not mean another case the size of the 3M earplug docket doesn’t come around.

“Individual MDLs can get big enough to really sway the entire federal judiciary, and I don’t think 3M is going to be the last one,” said Feldon. “I don’t know what the next one will be, or when it will happen, but the overall trend certainly suggests we’ll be seeing more MDLs and larger MDLs than we have in the past.”