Zantac MDL Judge Dismisses Innovator-Liability Claims with Leave to Amend

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — The judge overseeing the federal Zantac (ranitidine) multidistrict litigation has dismissed without prejudice claims based upon the innovator-liability theory, ruling plaintiffs failed to allege a prima facie case of specific personal jurisdiction as to any defendant in California or Massachusetts.

In a June 30 order, Judge Robin L. Rosenberg of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida found plaintiffs have not sufficiently alleged that defendants’ contacts “relate to” plaintiffs’ claims for purposes of establishing specific personal jurisdiction over defendants for the sale of a generic manufacturer’s products.

Scientific studies have shown …