Wednesday, May 6, 2026

PowerPort, Baby Food Metals Drive Midweek Docket as Talc Volume Cools

The Bard Implanted Port Catheter Products Liability Litigation (MDL 3081) absorbed 46 new filings in the District of Arizona this week, emerging as the third-busiest docket behind only talc and Uber assault litigation. The surge concentrates before Judge David G. Campbell and marks the most concentrated PowerPort activity since centralization, with filings clustering around device fracture and migration allegations. The Baby Food Products Liability Litigation (MDL 3101) added 19 new complaints split between Florida's Middle and Northern Districts, continuing momentum on heavy metals exposure claims. Meanwhile, the Glucagon-like Peptide-1 Receptor Agonists (GLP-1 RAs) Non-Arteritic Anterior Ischemic Optic Neuropathy Products Liability Litigation (MDL 3163) quietly added 9 filings before Judge Karen S. Marston ahead of next month's Science Day, suggesting plaintiff firms are positioning cases before potential causation rulings.

Lyft Assault MDL Adds Early Intake After JPML Centralization

The Lyft Passenger Sexual Assault Litigation (MDL 3171) added new complaints after the JPML's April 2026 centralization order, reflecting early docket intake rather than a separate transferor-court trend. Once an MDL is formed, complaints filed outside the transferee court are expected to move into the centralized proceeding, so the relevant signal is the MDL's overall volume and the timing of case-management activity. The Lyft docket now sits alongside the larger Uber Technologies, Inc., Passenger Sexual Assault Litigation (MDL 3084) as the second major ride-share assault consolidation, with both proceedings testing allegations over driver screening and passenger safety protocols. The practical question for attorneys is when the Lyft court sets leadership, discovery, and bellwether-selection procedures, not whether filings appear in multiple originating districts.

Bard Hernia Mesh MDL Sees Post-Settlement Activity as Individual Claims Persist

Four new filings entered the Davol, Inc./C.R. Bard, Inc., Polypropylene Hernia Mesh Products Liability Litigation (MDL 2846) this week in the Southern District of Ohio, despite the MDL's global settlement covering most pending claims. The filings suggest a residual pool of plaintiffs either excluded from or opting out of the settlement framework, with cases now proceeding individually before Judge Edmund A. Sargus Jr. The development highlights the persistent tail risk in settled mass torts, where late-identified injuries, statute of limitations tolling disputes, and coverage gaps generate continued federal docket activity. For practitioners, the filings indicate potential opportunities in individual case valuation and settlement opt-out strategy as the MDL transitions toward closure.