MDL Court Limits Discovery in BPA Plastic Products Litigation
The multidistrict litigation (MDL) court before which cases alleging a failure to disclose the possible harmful effects of plastic bottles containing bisphenol A (BPA) have been consolidated for pretrial proceedings has granted in part and denied in part the plaintiffs’ discovery motion. In re: Bisphenol-A (BPA) Polycarbonate Plastic Prods. Liab. Litig., MDL No. 1967 (W.D. Mo., order entered May 26, 2010).
The plaintiffs apparently sought to compel the disclosure of information relating to products other than plastic bottles, such as “plastic eating utensils, plastic plates and other food contact items,” and to non-health related information from more than five years before the lawsuit was filed. The court determined that it was too late to amend the complaint to include the manufacturers of the additional products, emphasizing that “this case was not intended to—and will not—become an all-encompassing ‘BPA case.’” The court also found that the burden on defendants of complying with these requests could not be justified now that the products liability-related claims no longer remain in the case, stating that defendants’ motivations in making competing product lines without BPA “have no bearing on the legal claims asserted in this case.” The remaining claims are for unjust enrichment, statutory violations, fraudulent and negligent omissions of material fact, and implied warranty of merchantability.
The court agreed with the plaintiffs that admissible evidence could be discovered by requiring defendants to provide information about their decision to market their more recently-manufactured products as “BPA Free.” According to the court, “there is a stark contrast between the manner in which Defendants have announced the absence of BPA and the manner in which they announced its presence. Plaintiffs are entitled to explore this issue and ascertain Defendants’ knowledge and beliefs about appropriate and effective methods of communicating health and safety information to consumers.”
