Judge Overseeing Ozempic Blindness Lawsuits Meeting With Lawyers for Initial Conference

First meeting with Ozempic vision loss MDL judge will involve discussions on how the litigation will proceed, and attorney leadership positions.

The U.S. District Judge recently appointed to preside over all federal lawsuits claiming Ozempic, Wegovy and similar drugs can cause sudden blindness and vision problems will meet with lawyers today, to discuss how the litigation will move forward now that claims brought throughout the federal court system have been consolidated for coordinated discovery and pretrial proceedings.

Novo Nordisk faces a rapidly growing number of Ozempic and Wegovy blindness lawsuits filed over the past few months, each raising similar allegations that former users of the popular diabetes and weight-loss medications were left with a rare vision condition, known as nonarteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION), which can lead to sudden vision loss.

The medications belong to a class of drugs called glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists, which also include Mounjaro, Zepbound, Saxenda, Trulicity, Rybelsus and others. While the popular medications began as diabetes treatments, in recent years they have been linked to significant weight loss benefits, prompting a surge in new formulations.

However, as use of the medications has become more widespread, a number of former users have come forward to file Ozempic lawsuits, Wegovy lawsuits and Mounjaro lawsuits, claiming that the drug manufacturers failed to warn about several severe side effects linked to the treatments, including a form of stomach paralysis known as gastroparesis, intestinal obstructions, hair loss and recent concerns over NAION.

Most of the NAION litigation has focused on Novo Nordisk’s products, including Ozempic, Wegovy and Saxenda. However, it has also included Trulicity, which is an Eli Lilly medication.

Last month, the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (JPML) issued a transfer order consolidating all Ozempic blindness lawsuits as part of a new multidistrict litigation (MDL) in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, where U.S. District Judge Karen Marston will preside over coordinated pretrial proceedings.

Judge Marston has already been assigned to oversee thousands of gastroparesis lawsuits filed against the makers of Ozempic and other GLP-1 medications, which have been consolidated as part of a separate MDL for more than a year.

While the transfer order indicates that the two litigation tracks will remain separate, the JPML pointed out that there will likely be significant overlap between stomach paralysis and blindness lawsuits, making it more efficient for Judge Marston to oversee both federal MDLs. In addition, many of the claims also involve the same attorneys and defendants.

On December 23, Judge Marston issued the first case management order (PDF) for the Ozempic blindness lawsuits, setting today as the date of the initial case management conference. Judge Marston called upon attorneys representing both plaintiffs and defendants to familiarize themselves with the functioning of MDLs and the local civil rules for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania before the hearing.

The Court has imposed a pause on all current deadlines and outstanding discovery proceedings in claims filed before the Ozempic blindness MDL was established. At the time of the hearing, the parties are expected to review their respective position statements submitted in advance of the meeting, which lay out their “preliminary understanding of the facts involved in the litigation and the critical factual and legal issues.” These statements have not been filed on the public docket, and Judge Marston indicated they are not binding.

In advance of the meeting today, Judge Marston also called on the parties to list all pending motions in the already filed claims, as well as all related cases pending in state and federal courts.

The initial status conference agenda includes discussions on the initial census of cases, the use of similar orders already applied to the GLP-1 stomach paralysis claims, and discussion for selecting lead counsel for plaintiffs and defendants. The parties will also discuss the scheduling of future status conferences, new filings, amendments to existing complaints, newly proposed motions and a schedule for discovery proceedings.

According to an agenda (PDF) issued on January 6, Judge Marston will also hold a status conference for the GLP-1 stomach injury claims today, addressing the impact of certain anticipated motions, an update on state court litigation in Delaware, Indiana and New Jersey, and Rule 702 hearings, which will determine expert witnesses and evidence that will be allowed to be seen by juries.

GLP-1 Bellwether Lawsuits

Judge Marston has already indicated that the court plans to select a small group of representative cases as bellwether trials in the GLP-1 stomach paralysis lawsuits, which will serve as early test cases and allow the parties to evaluate how juries may respond to evidence and testimony expected to recur across thousands of similar claims. She is expected to do the same for Ozempic NAION lawsuits.

However, before the stomach paralysis trials can begin, Judge Marston has ordered both sides to resolve several issues that could have broad implications for the litigation, including preemption and general causation. Once those matters are addressed, the MDL is expected to proceed with preparing the first set of cases for jury consideration. While the verdicts will not directly determine the outcome of other GLP-1 claims, they are likely to shape settlement negotiations.

If the parties do not reach a GLP-1 settlement agreement after the bellwether trials, Judge Marston is likely to begin remanding the cases back to their original courts for individual trial dates.

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