What is Multidistrict Litigation (MDL)?

Updated: July 06, 2026

By Timo Bakker · July 6, 2026 · 5 min read

Multidistrict Litigation (MDL) is a federal court procedure that consolidates similar lawsuits filed in different districts into one court for pretrial handling. It is what allows mass torts (opioids, hip replacements, hair relaxer cancer cases) to be handled efficiently.

How MDLs work

1. Multiple lawsuits alleging similar claims are filed in different federal districts.
2. The Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (JPML) reviews and decides whether to create an MDL.
3. The JPML transfers all similar cases to one federal court (the "transferee court") for pretrial handling.
4. Discovery, motions, and possible bellwether trials happen in the transferee court.
5. Individual cases are then transferred back to their original courts for trial (if they do not settle).

Why MDL vs class action

• MDL: each plaintiff keeps their own case + individual damages. Best for mass torts with widely-varying individual harms.
• Class action: everyone treated as one group with uniform recovery formula. Best for cases with similar per-plaintiff harm.

Well-known MDLs

• Opioid MDL (In re: National Prescription Opiate Litigation) — over 3,000 cases consolidated.
• 3M Combat Arms earplugs — over 260,000 plaintiffs.
• Roundup weed killer — multiple thousand plaintiffs.
• Zantac heartburn medication — over 70,000 plaintiffs.
• Camp Lejeune water contamination — potentially millions of veterans and family members.

MDL settlements vs class action settlements

MDL settlements typically pay much more per plaintiff than class action settlements — often $50,000-500,000+ per person for personal injury MDLs. But you need to prove your individual harm.