LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (Legal Newsline) - A federal judge granted law firm Motley Rice’s wish and remanded an opioid lawsuit against Wal-Mart back to state court in Arkansas, rejecting the company’s attempt to keep the case in federal court.
In a brief decision dated Sept. 25, U.S. District Judge James M. Moody said the “federal-state balance” dictated the return of the lawsuit filed by Pulaski and Jefferson Counties in Arkansas, who drafted their complaints to rely entirely upon state-law claims.
The case is notable because the county is represented by South Carolina law firm Motley Rice, whose lead partner Joe Rice helps lead federal multidistrict litigation against opioid manufacturers and distributors. In an earlier filing the law firm urged the judge to remand the case back to state court so it doesn’t “languish in a pile” in federal court proceedings in which Motley Rice has a leadership role.
Judge Moody said the Arkansas counties didn’t raise exclusively federal claims against Wal-Mart, which is also based in Arkansas. Even if the company cited the federal Controlled Substances Act in its defense a state court could resolve the claims without addressing the CSA.
Motley Rice’s characterization of the MDL was ironic given the firm’s aggressive efforts to sign up cities and counties around the country to file lawsuits in federal court and obtain leverage against the industry for a potential multibillion-dollar settlement. At the same time as the firm was pursuing this strategy for some of its clients, it clearly was advising others that their cases would languish among more than 1,000 others in what have become prolonged pretrial proceedings if removed to federal court.