And Now A Word From The Panel: A 21st Century MDL

Welcome to the latest installment of "And Now a Word from the Panel," a bimonthly column which "rides the circuit" with the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (or simply the "panel," for short) as it meets on a bimonthly basis at venues around the country.

In honor of our 21st installment, this month's column will address a burgeoning category of cases subject to MDLs during the 21st century — cyber MDLs, or more specifically, cases arising from an alleged data privacy breach. Since the beginning of 2015, the panel has established seven MDL proceedings in this area. At first glance, these cases appear to be a far cry from the electrical equipment antitrust cases which spurred Congress to establish the panel and MDL proceedings 48 years ago. But upon further reflection, the growth of these cyber MDL proceedings illustrates that the standards used to create MDL proceedings cut across industries and disciplines. The elasticity of the MDL statute and