We have blogged about class actions; we have blogged about
preemption; we have blogged about social media; we have blogged
about alleged economic loss; and we have blogged about alleged
product defects—endlessly. Rarely, however, have we blogged
on all of these topics in a single post.
Today is the day, and the topic is an order dismissing a class
action in the District of Connecticut. It all came together in
favor of the defendant in a well-reasoned order in Ignacuinos
v. Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals Inc., No. 3:19-cv-672,
2020 WL 5659071 (D. Conn. Sept. 23, 2020). The plaintiffs alleged
that they and a class of patients like them used the
defendant's COPD inhalers, but received only about half of the
doses than what the labeling represented. Id. at *2-*3.
This initially appears to be a typical economic loss class
action—a bunch of people who claim they got less than they
paid for. There was, however, a twist. These plaintiffs also
alleged physical harm in
