Multidistrict litigation is a significant part of the federal court system—both in its financial stakes and in the burden it places on judges who are called on to handle vast, tentacled cases that often drag on for years.
It’s a job that requires skillful case management, and the panel that doles out the massive cases has tended to return to repeat players on the bench. That model, while logical, has a problem: Eventually, the judges with the greatest experience handling MDLs will retire, leaving a competence gap.
