Second Circuit Affirms Mirena MDL Dismissals

On July 1, 2016, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit affirmed the dismissal of 16 plaintiffs’ claims against Bayer related to the Mirena IUD.  The plaintiffs were appealing the district court’s January 2015 order dismissing their lawsuits as untimely filed.  Even though the plaintiffs did not live in California, they filed their lawsuits in California federal court.  The cases were then transferred to the multidistrict litigation pending in the Southern District of New York. The district court found, and the Second Circuit affirmed, that the California statute of limitations applied to the claims and the suits were therefore time-barred.  This is the first disposition of an appeal from the Mirena multidistrict litigation.  The Second Circuit’s summary order is available here. Goldman Ismail Tomaselli Brennan & Baum LLP represents Bayer in the Mirena litigation.  Shayna S. Cook serves as lead national defense counsel, Brian P. O’Donoghue as national coordination counsel, and Kenneth F. Baum leads the national science and expert team for Bayer in the Mirena litigation, with assistance from Emma C. Neff and Allyson D. Miller.