Depo-Provera Lawyers Intending To Remain in MDL Leadership Must Seek Reappointment: Judge

Attorneys have until February 13 to reapply for leadership positions in the Depo-Provera MDL, taking actions that benefit all women pursuing lawsuits over brain tumors linked to the birth control shot.

A federal judge is calling for attorneys to reapply for leadership positions in the Depo-Provera brain tumor MDL (multi-district litigation), before their one-year appointment is set to expire in March 2026.

There are currently more than 1,752 Depo-Provera lawsuits pending in the MDL, which have been centralized in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida before Judge M. Casey Rodgers, for coordinated discovery and pretrial proceedings.

Each of the claims raise similar allegations, indicating that the manufacturers of the popular birth control shot have failed to adequately warn women and the medical community about the link between Depo-Provera and meningioma, which are slow-growing brain tumors that can cause signficant consequences, due to the pressure they exert on the brain, nerves and blood vessels.

Early in the federal litigation, Judge Rodgers appointed a group of 63 lawyers to Depo-Provera leadership positions, tasked with taking certain actions during the MDL proceedings that benefit all plaintiffs pursuing claims.

As the size and scope of the litigation continue to grow, with more women filing lawsuits after learning their meningioma diagnoses may be linked to prior Depo-Provera injections, the current MDL leadership appointments are set to expire on March 16, and no cases have yet gone to trial.

In a pretrial order (PDF) issued on January 6, Judge Rodgers called for attorneys to apply for reappointment to their leadership positions, if they wish to continue serving in the existing roles.

The applications must be no longer than two pages in length and should detail “the nature and scope of counsel’s work over the past year,” including resources and time they have spent on the case. The applications for reappointment must be submitted to the court by February 13.

Depo-Provera Lawsuit Bellwether Trials

Shortly after appointing the attorneys last year, Judge Rodgers announced the selection of five “pilot” lawsuits that will serve as early test cases to help gauge how juries may respond to certain evidence and testimony likely to be repeated throughout the litigation.

Judge Rodgers has previously indicated that she wants the first Depo-Provera bellwether trial ready by December 7 or 14, 2026, with the rest of the trials scheduled to begin in January 2027.

The first Depo-Provera lawsuit scheduled to go before a jury was filed by Donna Toney of Florida, who indicates she suffered vertigo, dizziness and hearing loss due to a brain tumor caused by her birth control injections, resulting in the need for brain surgery.

While the outcomes of the pilot trials will not be binding on other claims, they will be closely watched by lawyers involved in related cases and could help form the basis of a Depo-Provera lawsuit settlement agreement, avoiding the need for hundreds of individual trials to be scheduled nationwide in future years.

To stay up to date on this litigation, sign up to receive Depo-Provera lawsuit updates delivered directly to your inbox.