Plaintiffs May Not Challenge Opioid Coordination Trial Judge Appointment, Calif. Court Affirms

LOS ANGELES — A California appellate court has upheld a trial court’s refusal to disqualify Judge William Highberger as the opioid coordination motion judge, affirming that the plaintiffs had already successfully sought to disqualify the first appointee and are barred by state law from attempting to do so a second time.

In a Nov. 25 opinion, the California Court of Appeal, 2nd District, concluded that the one-challenge-per-side limitation in Code of Civil Procedure Section 170.6 remains in effect.

Several California governmental entities sued various opioid manufacturers, including Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc., Teva Pharmaceuticals USA Inc., Actavis LLC and Cephalon Inc., asserting …