In re National Rifle Association Business Expenditures Litigation, MDL No. 2979 — filings

Case summary

This page collects four documents from the motion to centralise the National Rifle Association litigation before the United States Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation as MDL No. 2979. The NRA, plaintiff in two actions and defendant in a third, moved under 28 U.S.C. § 1407 to centralise four actions then pending in three districts in the Northern District of Texas, or, in its reply, unopposed to the Northern District of New York. The New York Attorney General, the plaintiffs in the Middle District of Tennessee action and the Ackerman parties opposed centralisation. By order of February 4, 2021 the Panel denied the motion. The page also holds two of the underlying pleadings as exhibits: the NRA's first amended complaint against Ackerman McQueen and the New York Attorney General's verified complaint.

Case at a glance

Why did the Panel deny transfer?

Because it was not persuaded that centralisation is necessary for the convenience of the parties and witnesses or to further the just and efficient conduct of the litigation, finding any factual overlap limited and overshadowed by the many individual questions presented by the alleged facts, claims and parties in each action.

What else weighed against centralisation?

That the NRA and the Ackerman parties are each represented by common counsel in all actions in which they are parties and the Stinchfield defendant is represented by counsel affiliated with the NRA's counsel, which the Panel said should facilitate informal coordination of this relatively small number of actions.

What is the New York Attorney General's complaint?

A verified complaint filed in the Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York, Index No. 451625/2020, by the People of the State of New York by Letitia James, Attorney General, against the NRA, Wayne LaPierre, Wilson Phillips, John Frazer and Joshua Powell. It is filed here as Exhibit A to the centralisation papers.