And Now A Word From The Panel: 2017 MDL Year In Review

Welcome as we enter our sixth year of "And Now a Word from the Panel," a column which "rides the circuit" with the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation as it meets on a bimonthly basis at venues around the country.

As we begin 2018, it's déjà vu all over again with the panel returning to its favorite January destination of the state of Florida. As in January 2017, this month's hearing session will take place in Miami, a welcome destination for MDL practitioners who may have spent much of January in arctic conditions elsewhere in the country.

Judging from the panel docket for this month's session, it looks like the panel is off to a busy start. In stark contrast to the trend of the past few years and the relative paucity of MDL motions, the panel will be considering a robust 13 motions to create an MDL proceeding. ¹ This is roughly a third of the total number of motions ruled upon by the panel during the entirety of 2017.