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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: This
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District of Columbia Circuit Court Upholds Exclusion of Expert Testimony Under Daubert
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DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA CIRCUIT COURT UPHOLDS EXCLUSION OF EXPERT TESTIMONY UNDER DAUBERT
In Meister v. Medical Engineering, No. 00-7241 (Oct. 20, 2001), the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia reviewed a trial court's granting of judgment for the defendant even after the court had permitted the expert testimony of the plaintiff. This was a product liability lawsuit alleging medical illness from exposure to implants. The District Court had permitted the plaintiffs experts to testify over defense Daubert objections. After the jury returned a $10,000,000.00 verdict the defendant's again moved for judgment claiming the testimony was not reliable scientific evidence on causation. The District Court granted the motion and the plaintiff appealed. The Court of Appeals upheld the exclusion finding the experts failed to show any nexus between her atypical symptoms and her implants. The simultaneous existence of the two were not enough. Nor was reliance on case reports, methodology and atypical symptoms. The court held Daubert supported granting the motion for the defendant.
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