Federal Judges Reject Effort to Expedite Consolidation of Fungal Meningitis Lawsuits

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A panel of federal judges has decided not to expedite consideration of a petition to consolidate all lawsuits over the nationwide fungal meningitis outbreak despite concerns from plaintiffs that the Massachusetts compounding pharmacy linked to the outbreak may soon file for bankruptcy.

In an order entered Nov. 9, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation said it was not persuaded by plaintiffs to depart from its long-standing practice of considering motions to coordinate factually similar federal lawsuits in “due course.” As a result, the petition seeking transfer of approximately three-dozen cases pending against New England Compounding Center to …