Minn. Federal Judge Upholds Order Limiting Discovery in Surgical Stapler Action

MINNEAPOLIS — A Minnesota federal judge has upheld an order denying a plaintiff’s motion to compel production of emails relating to customer complaint reports in a surgical stapler case, ruling that the burden of producing the emails outweighs their value.

On Sept. 22, Chief Judge John R. Tunheim of the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota found the plaintiff failed to present evidence contradicting Ethicon Endo-Surgery Inc.’s estimate that production of the emails would cost $2 million.

Susan Webb sued Ethicon, alleging she suffered injuries caused by its TX surgical stapler.

On June 6, 2014, Webb served …