New MDLs Formed, J&J’s Talc Defense Verdict, and Major Paraquat Updates

The $60M NEC Setback, Talc Dismissal Tactics, and AFFF Docket Cleanup

Key Takeaways * NEC $60M Verdict Overturned: The Illinois appellate court reversed a massive 2024 plaintiffs' verdict due to improper jury instructions regarding failure to warn claims and the improper handling of prejudicial executive compensation evidence, forcing a retrial. * J&J Seeks Total Talc Dismissal: Capitalizing on a recent California defense verdict and the subsequent withdrawal of two key plaintiffs' experts, Johnson & Johnson is aggressively pushing to dismiss the entire MDL with prejudice, a move the plaintiffs' bar plans to fiercely oppose using alternative experts. * AFFF Docket Cleanup Underway: Defendants in the AFFF individual personal injury litigation are moving to dismiss roughly 10,000 cases over missing fact sheets and unverified diagnoses. This mass inventory purging is viewed as a highly positive signal that defendants are calculating viable case counts ahead of potential settlement negotiations. * Lone Pine Constraints: Due to a Lone Pine order currently in place for the AFFF personal injury docket, the litigation is becoming increasingly technical and challenging, meaning explosive new case-filing volume is highly unlikely. * Global Pressures on Social Media Tech: The UK has announced a sweeping ban on social media for children under 16 effective in 2027. Combined with similar bans in Australia and Spain, plus upcoming mainstream whistle-blower media, global regulatory and legal pressures are forcing major tech platforms onto the defensive.

Tax Strategy for Trial Lawyers: Act 60, Penalty Refunds, and Clean Books

Key Takeaways * A Supreme Court ruling has opened up $170 billion in AIPA tariff refunds for importers and downstream businesses, creating a major niche co-counsel opportunity for law firms. * Acting quickly before suppliers receive their tariff refunds makes reimbursement conversations much smoother and less adversarial for downstream businesses. * Moving to Puerto Rico under Act 60 allows attorneys to eliminate short-term and long-term capital gains and lower business tax rates to 4% via export services companies. * Law firms can recover past IRS penalties and interest through the Kwong case FEMA extension, but the deadline closes on July 10, 2026. * The IRS relies on a secretive "DIF score" algorithm to select returns for audits, frequently targeting disproportionate marketing and entertainment expenses. * Less than half of law firms have adequate financial records when entering private equity negotiations, which directly lowers their EBITDA valuation multiples. * Successfully scaling or selling a law firm requires a comprehensive advisory team, including M&A counsel, tax counsel, an ethics specialist, and a highly skilled CPA.

New MDLs Formed, J&J’s Talc Defense Verdict, and Major Paraquat Updates

Key Takeaways * Two New MDLs Established: The JPML has officially formed two new mass tort dockets: the Dupixent litigation in the District of New Jersey and the Spinal Cord Stimulator litigation against Boston Scientific in the Central District of California. * Dupixent Injury Focus: The Dupixent MDL targets a rare T-cell subtype of non-Hodgkin lymphoma , drawing from a massive potential pool of roughly 800,000 users and projected to eventually encompass a few thousand cases. * Spinal Cord Stimulator Scope Limited: Plaintiffs requested an industry-wide spinal cord stimulator MDL, but the JPML limited the initial consolidation to Boston Scientific due to distinct discovery tracks and trade secret concerns. An Abbott Laboratories MDL may follow later this year or early next year. * J&J Clinches Talc Victory: Johnson & Johnson secured a surprising 10-2 defense verdict in the second California state court talc bellwether trial. The outcome came down to a battle of the experts, where jurors expressed skepticism over plaintiff experts who failed to warn their own patients of the risks. * Paraquat Settlement Disruption: In the Paraquat MDL, the judge ordered a mandatory 10% case-specific workup and depositions for three law firms whose clients overwhelmingly opted out of a recent settlement proposal. Concurrently, Philadelphia state court cases are facing renewed jurisdiction challenges ahead of late-summer trials.

Inside the Underground Network of Child Abuse (And Why Nobody's Stopping It)

Key Takeaways * Lee Floyd spent over a decade defending major corporations like Johnson & Johnson and Bayer before transitioning to plaintiff's work in 2020. * A detailed conversation about systemic abuse at Cumberland Hospital prompted her to leave her corporate defense partnership within a single week to represent injured children. * Floyd secured a $360 million verdict in her very first trial on the plaintiff side, establishing the largest verdict in Virginia history. * Institutional abuse cases involve severe emotional challenges, with clients frequently experiencing intense trauma responses during written discovery and depositions. * Legal teams handling high-trauma cases require active internal support structures, including mandatory therapy schedules and flexible time-off policies, to protect staff members from vicarious trauma. * Effective intake protocols for sensitive litigation allow both the potential client and the staff member to pause or reschedule discussions if the content becomes too overwhelming.

Mass Tort Power Rankings: The "Rocket Docket" Surges & A Game-Changing $27M Precedent

Key Takeaways * The #1 Ranked Mass Tort remains the undisputed heavyweight champion of the board after securing a staggering $27 million settlement on a school district bellwether case that was originally selected entirely by the defense. * Depo Provera has officially broken into the top three as a historic "rocket docket" under Judge Rogers, on track to advance from MDL inception to a December trial date in under two years. * Hair Relaxer securely holds the #2 spot on the rankings with a steady influx of filings pushing the docket toward 12,000 cases as Daubert decisions loom this fall. * Tech litigation bottlenecks are prompting defense firms to pivot, with corporate targets in the Roblox litigation aggressively trying to force 160 MDL cases into individual state-by-state minor arbitration. * Weight Loss Drug dockets require a dual-screening approach from intake teams, as litigation expands concurrently across separate gastrointestinal injury and vision loss MDLs.