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The railroad on
Tuesday joined many plaintiffs in requesting that the U.S.
Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation appoint U.S. District
Judge Legrome Davis, who already oversees 16 cases stemming from
the accident, to handle all 22 existing lawsuits plus "numerous"
others it expects to be filed.
Passengers on Train 188 have sued Amtrak in Pennsylvania, New
York and New Jersey over injuries linked to the May 12
derailment, which occurred when the train left the track along a
northbound curve in Philadelphia after traveling at more than
twice the speed limit.
The consolidation of similar lawsuits can make litigation more
efficient and less expensive.
Amtrak has said its liability from a single accident is capped
at $200 million, under a 1997 federal law.
It is unclear when the judicial panel, which is comprised of
seven federal judges and known as the MDL panel, will rule.
Congress created the MDL panel in 1968 to decide when civil
lawsuits involving common questions of fact should be combined
before a single judge, to prevent duplicative and wasteful
litigation as well as inconsistent court rulings.
The case is In re: Amtrak Train Derailment in Philadelphia, PA
on May 12, 2015, U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict
Litigation, No. 15-04791.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Grant
McCool)
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