Justices Approve New Multidistrict Litigation Management Rule

The US Supreme Court has adopted a new federal rule on how courts handle initial steps in multidistrict litigation, teeing it up to go into effect later this year.

The court on Wednesday transmitted to Congress the multidistrict litigation rule, among other changes to the federal rules of civil, appellate, and bankruptcy procedure. Unless Congress takes action, those rule changes will go into effect on Dec. 1.

The multidistrict litigation rule lays out the first steps judges can take in the cases, but doesn’t mandate that any of the potential actions be taken.

The proposed rule was considered for seven years by members of the Advisory Committee on Civil Rules, which last year advanced a draft to the Committee on Rules of Practice and Procedure, also known as the Standing Committee. The Standing Committee approved the rule in June, and it was then signed off by the Judicial Conference — the federal judiciary’s policy making body — before being sent to the Supreme Court for approval.

The advisory committee received a significant amount of feedback on the rule as it was drafted, including many written comments and three public hearings.

Still, class-action attorneys said they were concerned about the measure after the advisory committee advanced it, saying it seemed to be directed at mass tort MDLs instead of class action MDLs.