Judge Slams Silica Evidence
A federal judge has remanded 90 silica-related cases to state court because they did not fall within federal jurisdiction and also cast doubt on medical evidence claimed by the defense, stating that it was fraudulently obtained.
Judge Janis Graham Jack, U.S. District Court, Southern District of Texas, in Corpus Christie, said in a 249-page ruling on Thursday that the court lacked jurisdiction over the claims. The order remands 90 cases, transferred by the Judicial Panel of MultiDistrict Litigation to the U.S. Southern District Court, which were filed before Dec. 5, 2004, to state courts, primarily Mississippi. Only 19 cases recently transferred to the court, as well as one original jurisdiction case, will remain in the federal court.
The order also includes a ruling granting a defense motion to exclude testimony of two diagnosing physicians for the plaintiffs, and a motion for sanctions against a plaintiffs' law firm for what could amount to $825,000 in the original jurisdictional cases.
At a hearing earlier this year, Judge Jack derided the integrity of the expert medical testimony presented by the plaintiffs, particularly that of Dr. Ray Harron, who was involved in over two-thirds of the diagnoses. In last week's ruling Judge Jack wrote that Dr. Harron "found the evidence he was paid to find."
Jackson, Miss.-based defense attorney Danny Mulholland said the judge's ruling was gratifying.
"It is a resounding affirmation of the claims we have been making for over a year that the diagnoses of these cases were not valid," Mr. Mulholland said.
While federal courts have generally been thought of as a more favorable venue for such cases, Mr. Mulholland said recently enacted tort reform in Mississippi will provide a more hospitable atmosphere for the defense.
In addition, Judge Jack's ruling, casting doubt on the medical evidence, will go a long way to getting the cases dismissed, he said.
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