Darvocet MDL Judge Remands 6 Cases to Calif. State Court; Finds McKesson Properly Joined

COVINGTON, Ky. — The judge overseeing the federal Darvocet/propoxyphene multidistrict litigation has remanded six cases to California state court, ruling that the only nondiverse defendant, McKesson Corp., was properly joined.

On July 25, Judge Danny C. Reeves of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky found that the claims against McKesson Corp. are neither preempted, nor are they factually deficient. The judge also rejected defendants’ assertion that the cases constitute a “mass action” under the Class Action Fairness Act of 2005.

The cases, Bowen, Mitchell, Baltazar, Dadoush, Gomez, Saunders and Jasmin, were originally filed in California …