The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals recently held that the claims of four (4) plaintiffs could be consolidated for trial even though the plaintiffs had distinct backgrounds and also there were causation issues. In Eghnayem v. Boston Scientific Corp., 873 F.3d 1304 (11th Cir. 2017). Plaintiffs sued for injuries allegedly caused by a pelvic mesh manufactured by Defendants. They claimed that there was a negligent product design, negligent failure to warn, strict liability design defect and strict liability for failure to warn. The Defendant objected to the four (4) Plaintiffs being consolidated into the action because of the distinct background of the Plaintiffs and also that there were causation issues which were different relative to the Plaintiffs. In ruling the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals stated that lawsuits involving common questions of law and fact are properly consolidated, and while proof of causation for each individual Plaintiff was necessarily different, including the use of very graphic photographs for one (1) Plaintiff to inflame the jury, which cannot apply to three (3) other Plaintiffs ? those differences are not enough standing alone to bar consolidation. The Court emphasized that were specific jury instructions given as to how to handle the consolidated claims, and found these instructions provided adequate protection against the fear that a jury might improperly weigh evidence admissible versus one (1) Defendant against the other. The Court upheld the trial court?s consolidation of the four (4) Plaintiffs for the trial.
