Zantac MDL Decision Reinforces Principle That Lack Of General Acceptance Of An Expert's Conclusions Raises A Red Flag

• Jurisdiction: United States,Federal
• Author: Mr Terrence J. Dee and Sarah Bily
• Law Firm: Winston & Strawn LLP
• Published date: 16 February 2023

The Zantac MDL Court recently reinforced the important role of general acceptance of an expert's conclusions to a court's Rule 702 admissibility analysis.

The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida granted summary judgment against more than 2,450 plaintiffs who had cases pending in the MDL, ruling that they had failed to produce reliable expert testimony necessary to support their claims under Rule 702. In re Zantac (Ranitidine) Prod. Liab. Litig., No. 20-MD-2924, ---F. Supp. 3d---, 2022 WL 17480906, at *4, *6, *167 (S.D. Fla. Dec. 6, 2022).

The litigation involves claims against manufacturers of ranitidine, a heartburn medication sold under the brand name of Zantac. After Zantac had been on the market for several decades, a testing laboratory filed a Citizen Petition with the FDA and called for a recall of ranitidine. Id. at *2, *5. The petition explained that the private company's testing found high levels of a carcinogen in the drug. Id. at *5. Simultaneously...