On September 08, 2020 a
Party Notice
was filed
involving a dispute between
Acevedo, Steven,
Allison Kerns,
Alyce Bull,
Artemeise Jackson,
Ashford, William,
August, Michael,
Barbara O'Grady,
Bemis, Sebastian,
Blair, Leonard,
Booth, Shirley,
Bo Peterson,
Boyd, James,
Bremenour, Dale,
Brett Lazerus,
Brett Martin,
Brian Gawley,
Bruce Macdougall,
Bryant, Mildred,
Bull, Alyce,
Cabral, Richard,
Carmina Lavalle,
Charles Crane,
Crane, Charles,
Dale Bremenour,
Danny Marlenee,
David Mccarroll,
David Roberts,
Denise Hernandez,
Donner-Leak, Herma,
Earl Quarteman, Jr.,
Edna Youngwirth,
Eric Mckelvey,
Fife, Rebecca,
Floyd Patterson,
Frederick Glass,
Frederick Perry,
Gawley, Brian,
Glass, Frederick,
Harrod, Jacqueline,
Herma Donner-Leak,
Hernandez, Denise,
Hollabaugh, Robert,
Ingram, Robert,
Irene Steckler,
Jackson, Artemeise,
Jacqueline Harrod,
James Boyd,
James Parks,
Joan Jones,
Johnson, Robert,
Jones, Joan,
Jones, Natlie,
Juanita Papanicolas,
Judy Vincent,
Karen Thomas,
Katrina Winn,
Kerns, Allison,
Laurie Scott,
Lavalle, Carmina,
Lazerus, Brett,
Lengele, Rodney,
Leonard Blair,
Lilly, Michael,
Louis Makell,
Macdougall, Bruce,
Makell, Louis,
Maldonaldo, Mary,
Marlenee, Danny,
Martha Rios,
Martin, Brett,
Mary Maldonaldo,
Mary Price,
Marzett, Robin,
Mccarroll, David,
Mckelvey, Eric,
Michael August,
Michael Lilly,
Mildred Bryant,
Natlie Jones,
O'Grady, Barbara,
Papanicolas, Juanita,
Parks, James,
Patterson, Floyd,
Perry, Frederick,
Peterson, Bo,
Peuse, Wendy,
Phyllis Smith,
Price, Mary,
Quarteman, Earl Jr.,
Rebecca Fife,
Richard Cabral,
Rios, Martha,
Robert Hollabaugh,
Robert Ingram,
Robert Johnson,
Roberts, David,
Robin Marzett,
Rodney Lengele,
Scott, Laurie,
Seabaugh, Timothy,
Sebastian Bemis,
Sharron Shorter,
Shirley Booth,
Shorter, Sharron,
Smith, Phyllis,
Steckler, Irene,
Steven Acevedo,
Swanson, William,
Thomas, Karen,
Tifeney Williams,
Timothy Seabaugh,
Vincent, Judy,
Wendy Peuse,
William Ashford,
Williams, Tifeney,
William Swanson,
Winn, Katrina,
Youngwirth, Edna,
and
Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc.,
Boehringer Ingelheim Usa Corporation,
Glaxosmithkline Llc,
Grocery Outlet,
Kaiser Permanente International,
Pfizer Inc.,
Safeway Health, Inc.,
Safeway, Inc.,
Sanofi-Aventis U.S. Llc,
Sanofi Us Services Inc.,
The Vons Companies, Inc.,
for Unlimited Civil
in the District Court of Alameda County.
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Sarah
FILED BY FAX
ALAMEDA COUNTY
Jonathan
Tam (SBN 304143) October
09,
2020
DECHERT LLP
CLERKOF
One Bush Street,
Suite
1600 THESUPERIOR COURT
SanFrancisco,
CA 94104-4446 ByJoanneDownie,
Deputy
Telephone:
(415)262-4500 CASE NUMBER:
Facsimile:
(415)
262-4555 RG20073373
Email:jonathan.tam@dechert.com
Attorneys
forDefendantGlaxoSmithKline
LLC
[AdditionalCounsel
on Signature
Page]
SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA
COUNTY OF ALAMEDA
ROBERT INGRAM: CHARLES CRANE; CaseNo. RG20073373
CARMINA LAVALLE, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF
OF BRANDON LAVALLE, DECEDENT; NOTICE OF FILING OF
MILDRED BRYANT, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF
OF JOHN BRYANT, DECEDENT;, WENDY NOTICE OF REMOVAL
PEUSE; DAVID MCCARROLL; KAREN
THOMAS; JUANITA PAPANICOLAS; LEONARD
BLAIR; MARY MALDONADO, MARY PRICE;
MICHAEL AUGUST; RICHARD CABRAL;
ROBIN MARZETT; ARTERMEISE JACKSON;
BRUCE MACDOUGALL,; KATRINA WINN:
RODNEY LENGELE; MARTHA RIOS,
PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF JOSEFINA RIOS-
ESTRADA, DECEDENT; DALE BREMENOUR;
WILLIAM ASHFORD; REBECCA FIFE,
PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF PIOTR BURDA,
DECEDENT; BRETT MARTIN; ERIC
MCKELVEY; BRIAN GAWLEY; BO PETERSON;
JAMES PARKS, ALLISON KERNS; DENISE
HERNANDEZ, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF
SAMUEL HERNANDEZ, DECEDENT; TIMOTHY
SEABAUGH; EARL QUARTERMAN, JR.;
ROBERT HOLLABAUGH; FREDERICK GLASS;
STEVEN ACEVEDO; JUDY VINCENT; ALYCE
BULL; EDNA YOUNGWIRTH; JOAN JONES:
JAMES BOYD; SHARRON SHORTER,
PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF CAROLYN
SHORTER, DECEDENT; LOUIS MAKELL;
ROBERT JOHNSON; BRETT LAZERUS; FLOYD
PATTERSON; PHYLLIS SMITH; TIFENEY
WILLIAMS, SHIRLEY BOOTH; JACQUELINE
HARROD, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF ROLAND
MARTIN, DECEDENT; LAURIE SCOTT;
NATALIE JONES, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF
MARLOW M.TAYLOR, DECEDENT;
SEBASTIAN BEMIS; BARBARA O'GRADY;
WILLIAM SWANSON, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF
OF TONYA SWANSON, DECEDENT; HERMA
-|-
NOTICEOF FILINGOFNOTICE OFREMOVAL
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Sarah
if DONNER-LEAK; DAVID ROBERTS; DANNY
MARLENEE: FREDERICK PERRY; IRENE
2 STECKLER; AND MICHAEL LILLY,
3 Plaintiffs,
v.
4 BOEHRINGER INGELHEIM
5 PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.,INCORRECTLY
. DESIGNATED AS DOE 1;BOEHRINGER
6 INGELHEIM USA CORPORATION,
INCORRECTLY DESIGNATED AS DOE 2;
7 GLAXOSMITHKLINE LLC,INCORRECTLY
DESIGNATED ASDOE 3,PFIZER INC.,
g ||INCORRECTLY DESIGNATED AS DOE 4,
SANOFI US SERVICES INC.,INCORRECTLY
9 DESIGNATED AS DOE 5;SANOFLAVENTIS
ULS.LLC, INCORRECTLY DESIGNATED AS
19 ||DOE 6;SAFEWAY, INC.,SAFEWAY HEALTH,
INC.;THE VONS COMPANIES, INC;GROCERY
I OUTLET; KAISER PERMANENTE
INTERNATIONAL; AND DOES 7 THROUGH 100
2 INCLUSIVE,
Defendants.
13
14 PLEASE TAKE NOTICE THAT onOctober6,2020,DefendantsBoehringer
Ingelheim
15 Pharmaceuticals,
Inc.,
Bochringer
IngelheimUSA Corporation,
GlaxoSmithKline
LLC, Pfizer
Inc.,
16 SanofiUS Services
Inc.,
andSanofi-Aventis
U.S.LLC (collectively,
Does| through
6,and the
"7 “Removing Defendants”)
intheabove-captioned
actionremovedthis
actiontotheUnitedStates
18 District
CourtfortheNorthernDistrict
ofCalifornia,
by filing
a Notice
of RemovalinthatCourt.A
19 trueandcorrect
copyof the Removing
Defendants’
Noticeof Removalis
annexed hereto
asExhibit
20 L.
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
-2-
NOTICEOF FILINGOFNOTICE OFREMOVAL
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if
Accordingly,
andpursuant
to28 U.S.C.§ 1446(d),
this
Courtmay proceednofurther
unless
2
anduntil
thecaseisremanded.
3
4 DATED: October6,2020
DECHERT LLP
5 |
6
Jonathan
Tam (SBN 304143)
7 One BushStreet,
Suite1600
San Francisco,
CA 94104-4446
Telephone:
(415)262-4500
9 Facsimile:
(415)
262-4555
Email:jonathan.tam@dechert.com
10
Attorneys
for Defendant GlaxoSmithKline
M LLC
12 .
B baad hate 4 Ril nevi
14 SharonD. Mayo (SBN 150469)
is Tommy Huynh (SBN 306222)
. ARNOLD & PORTER KAYE SCHOLER
16 LLP
ThreeEmbarcaderoCenter,10thFloor
17 SanFrancisco,
CA 94111-4024
Telephone:415.471.3100
18 Facsimile:415.471.3400
19 sharon.mayo@arnoldporter.com
tommy.huynh@arnoldporter.com
20
KathrynM. Podsiadlo
(SBN 299438)
"4 ARNOLD & PORTER KAYE
SCHOLER LLP
22 777 SouthFigueroa
Street,
44thFloor
LosAngeles,CA 90017-5844
B Telephone:213.243.4000
Facsimile:213.243.4199
24 kathryn.podsiadlo@arnoldporter.com
25 Attorneys
for SanofiUS Services
Inc.and
26 Sanofi-Aventis
U.S.
ELC
27
28
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%
bag
Y Oe Bak wer 3
: ae
Jessica
B. Rydstrom(SBN 256600)
WILLIAMS & CONNOLLY LLP
725 12thStreet
NW
Washington,DC 20005
Telephone:
(202)434-5000
Facsimile:
(202)434-5029
jrydstrom@we.com
Attorney for
Pfizer
Inc.
A
ot f’ 4
ph Rae pM buy hiker4 |
MichaelB.Shortnacy(SBN 277035)
KING & SPALDING LLP
633West Fifth
Street,
Suite 1600
LosAngeles,CA 90071
Telephone:
(213)443-4355
Facsimile:
(213)
443-4310
mshortnacy@kslaw.com
Attorneys for
DefendantBoehringer
Ingelheim
Pharmaceuticals,
Inc.and
BoehringerIngelheimUSACorporation
-4-
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EXHIBIT 1
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Case 3:20-cv-06954 Document1 Filed10/06/20 Page 1 of29
Mark S.Cheffo(prohacviceforthcoming)
DECHERT LLP
1095 AvenueoftheAmericas
New York,NY 10036
Telephone:
(212)698-3500
Facsimile:
(212)698-3599
Email: mark.cheffo@dechert.com
WillW. Sachse(prohacviceforthcoming)
DECHERT LLP
CiraCentre,
2929 ArchStreet
Philadelphia,
PA 19104
Telephone:
(215)994-4000
Facsimile:
(215)994-2222
Email:willsachse@dechert.com
Jonathan
Tam (SBN 304143)
DECHERT LLP
One BushStreet,
Suite1600
SanFrancisco,
CA 94104-4446
Telephone:
(415)262-4500
Faesimile:
(415)262-4555
Email:jonathan.tam@dechert.com
Attorneys
forDefendantGlaxoSmithKline
LLC
[Additional
Counsel
on Signature
Page|
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
ROBERT INGRAM; CHARLES CRANE;
CARMINA LAVALLE, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF CaseNo.
OF BRANDON LAVALLE, DECEDENT;
MILDRED BRYANT, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF NOTICE OF REMOVAL OF ACTION
OF JOHN BRYANT, DECEDENT; WENDY
PEUSE; DAVID MCCARROLL; KAREN
THOMAS; JUANITA PAPANICOLAS; LEONARD DEMAND FOR JURY TRIAL
BLAIR; MARY MALDONADO; MARY PRICE;
MICHAEL AUGUST; RICHARD CABRAL;
ROBIN MARZETT,; ARTERMEISE JACKSON;
BRUCE MACDOUGALL; KATRINA WINN;
RODNEY LENGELE; MARTHA RIOS,
PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF JOSEFINA RIOS-
ESTRADA, DECEDENT; DALE BREMENOUR;
WILLIAM ASHFORD; REBECCA FIFE,
PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF PIOTR BURDA,
DECEDENT; BRETT MARTIN; ERIC
MCKELVEY; BRIAN GAWLEY; BO PETERSON;
JAMES PARKS; ALLISON KERNS; DENISE
HERNANDEZ, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF
SAMUEL HERNANDEZ, DECEDENT; TIMOTHY
SEABAUGH; EARL QUARTERMAN, JR.;
ROBERT HOLLABAUGH; FREDERICK GLASS;
NOTICE OF REMOVAL
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Case 3:20-cv-06954 Decument1 Filed10/06/20 Page 2 of29
1 || STEVENACEVEDO; JUDY VINCENT; ALYCE
BULL; EDNA YOUNGWIRTH; JOAN JONES;
2 || JAMESBOYD; SHARRON SHORTER,
PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF CAROLYN
3 || SHORTER,DECEDENT; LOUIS MAKELL;
ROBERT JOHNSON; BRETT LAZERUS; FLOYD
4|| PATTERSON; PHYLLIS SMITH; TIFENEY
WILLIAMS, SHIRLEY BOOTH; JACQUELINE
5 || HARROD, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF
ROLAND MARTIN, DECEDENT,; LAURIE
6 || SCOTT;
NATALIE JONES, PLAINTIFF ON
BEHALF OF MARLOW M.TAYLOR,
7 || DECEDENT; SEBASTIAN BEMIS; BARBARA
O'GRADY; WILLIAM SWANSON, PLAINTIFF
8 |}ON
BEHALF OF TONYA SWANSON,
DECEDENT; HERMA DONNER-LEAK; DAVID
9 |}ROBERTS;DANNY MARLENEE; FREDERICK
PERRY; IRENE STECKLER; AND MICHAEL
10|| LILLY,
ii Plaintiffs,
12 v.
13 || BOEHRINGER INGELHEIM
PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.,INCORRECTLY
14 || DESIGNATED AS DOE 1;BOEHRINGER
INGELHEIM USA CORPORATION,
15 | INCORRECTLY DESIGNATED AS DOE 2;
GLAXOSMITHKLINE LLC, INCORRECTLY
16 ||DESIGNATED AS DOE 3;PFIZER INC.,
INCORRECTLY DESIGNATED AS DOE 4;
17 || SANOFIUS SERVICES INC.,INCORRECTLY
DESIGNATED AS DOE 5;SANOFI-AVENTIS
18 |}U.S.
LLC, INCORRECTLY DESIGNATED AS
DOE 6;SAFEWAY, INC.; SAFEWAY HEALTH,
19 |}LINC.;
THE VONS COMPANIES, INC;GROCERY
OUTLET; KAISER PERMANENTE
20 | INTERNATIONAL; AND DOES 7THROUGH 100
INCLUSIVE,
21
Defendants.
22
23 DEFENDANTS BOEHRINGER INGELHEIM PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.,
24 BOEHRINGER INGELHEIM USA CORPORATION, GLAXOSMITHKLINE LLC,
PFIZER INC.,SANOFL US SERVICES INC...
AND SANOFLAVENTIS U.S.LLC’S
25 NOTICE OF REMOVAL
26
Pursuantto 28 U.S.C. §§ 1332,1441, and 1446,DefendantsBochringer Ingelheim
27
Pharmaceuticals,
Inc.,
Boehringer
IngelheimUSA Corporation,
GlaxoSmithKline
LLC, Pfizer
Inc.,
28
SanofiUS ServicesInc.,and Sanofi-Aventis
U.S. LLC (collectively,
the “Removing
-|-
NOTICE OF REMOVAL
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Case 3:20-cv-06954 Decumenti1 Filed10/06/20 Page 3 of29
1|| Defendants”)—all
ofwhich were improperly
and incorrectly
named asDoe Defendants—hereby
2 givenotice
of removalof this
action,
Jagram,etal.v.
Safeway,Inc.,
et al.,
CaseNo. RG20073373,
3 ||from theSuperior
Courtof the
Stateof California
inand forAlamedaCountyto theUnitedStates
4 ||District
CourtfortheNorthern
District
of California.|
DefendantsSafewayInc.
(incorrectly
named
5 as “Safeway,Inc.and SafewayHealth,
Inc.”),
The Vons Companies,Inc.,
GroceryOutlet,Inc.
6|| (incorrectly
named as “GroceryOutlet”),
and KaiserPermanenteInternational
(collectively,
the
7 “Retailer
Defendants”)
consent
totheremoval.
8 INTRODUCTION
9 1. Inthis
mass tort
action
claimingthat
theantacid
medication
Zantac(ranitidine)
causes
10|] various
cancers,Plaintiffs’
counselhas deployeda veritable
“bag of tricks”
to tryto defeat
li Removing Defendants’
right
to a federal
forum. Legg v.Wyeth,428F.3d 1317,1325(LithCir.
12|| 2005)(“Theremovalprocesswas created
by Congresstoprotectdefendants.
Congressdidnot
13 extendsuchprotection
withone hand,
and withtheother
giveplaintiffs
abagof tricks
to overcome
14|| it.”(citation
omitted)).
Thesesame Plaintiffs’
counselpreviously
filed
42 substantively
identical
15|| casesinCalifornia,
whichwereremoved tofederal
court
and stayed
pendingtransfer
totheZantac
16 ||MDL intheSouthernDistrict
ofFlorida.
Whilethe substantive
allegations
inthisComplaint
are
17 essentially
thesame asthoseinthefirst
round ofcases,
Plaintiffs’
counsel
has re-engineered
this
18|| Complaint(anda raft
ofsimilar
Complaints)
in atransparent
attempttomake it“removal-proof.”
19|| (A copyofthe Complaint
is attached
asExhibitA.).As further
explained
below,noneof these
20 ||machinations
canthwartthe diversity
jurisdiction
that
existsbetweentheproperdefendantsand
21 numerous Plaintiffs.
22 2. First,
eventhough theallegations
areplainly
directed
attheRemoving Defendants
23 who werenamed inthefirst
roundofcases,
Plaintiffs’
counselintentionally
omitsthose
Defendants
24 ||fromthecaption
of the
pleadingandinstead
mis-identifies
themas“DOES |through100.”Butthe
25 Removing Defendants
are proper
defendantstothecasewho can exercise
removalrights
despite
26 ||Plaintiffs’
purposely
misnaming them as DoeDefendants.Plaintiffs
repeatedly
and specifically
27 ||identifytheRemoving Defendantsby name inthe body of theComplaintas theparties
that
' By removingthisaction,
Removing Defendantsdo notwaive,and expresslypreserve,
any
objections
topersonal
jurisdiction.
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1|| developedorheld regulatory
license
for Zantacand,insome imstances,
as supposedly
knowing
2 ||aboutthe presence
ofNDMA intheproduct.And theComplaintrepeatedly
describes
theDoe
3 Defendantstoinclude
the“manufacturers”
ofZantacwho theyallege
failed
tolabeltheproduct
4 ||appropriately.
Of course,
Plaintiffs’
counsel
knows full
well who thecompaniesresponsible
for
5 manufacturing
and labeling
Zantacare becausecounsel
sued theminthe “first
round” ofZantac
6 ||casesfiled
inCalifornia
state
court.The RemovingDefendantsaretherefore
properparties
tothis
7 ||removalpetition
and their
citizenship
must beconsideredfordiversity
purposes.
SeeNeng Por
8 Yangv.Nutter,2011 WL 2746191,at*1, *4-5(D.Minn. July14,2011) (granting
JohnDoe
9|| defendants’
motiontodismissafter
theyremoved);
Avon Grp.LLC vy.
MosdosChofetzChaim Inc.,
10 ||2012 WL 2886697,at*2n.1 (S.D.N.Y.
July13,2012)(NengPor “implicitly
allowed”“John
Doe
Ii Defendants[to]removea casefrom state
court’);
Sandoval v.RepublieServs.,
Inc.,
2018WL
12 1989528,at*3 (C.D.Cal.Apr.24,2018) (“[When a plaintiff's
allegations
givea definite
clue
13 abouttheidentity
ofa fictitious
defendant.. .thecourtshou/dconsiderthecitizenship
ofthe
14|| fictitious
defendant.”(emphasis
in original;
citation
omitted)).
15 3. Second, unlikethefirst
tranche
of cases,
Plaintiffs
intentionally
failtoidentify
the
16|| residency
ofPlaintiffs
toobscurewhetherdiversity
exists
asto those
Plaintiffs.
The Courtshould
17|] not allow Plaintiffs’
counsel’sintentional
omissionof any allegations
regardingPlaintiffs’
18|] citizenships
intheComplainttostandas ajurisdictional
obstacle.Removing Defendants’
good
19|| faith
investigation
reveals
thatnofewer than23 of59 Plaintiffs
are ofdiverse
citizenship
to the
20 ||Removing Defendants.As totheremaining
Plaintiffs,
theCourtshouldorderlimited
jurisdictional
21 discovery.
See,e.g.,
BerkeleyResearchGrp.,
LLC v.UnitedPotato
Growers of Am.,
Inc.,
2017WL
22 ||952680,at*2 (N.D.Cal.
Mar. 13,
2017) (“Discovery
may beappropriately
granted
wherepertinent
23 facts
bearingonthequestion
of jurisdiction
arecontroverted
or whereamore satisfactory
showing
24 ||of the
factsis
necessary.’”
(quoting
Boschettov.Hansing,
539 F.3d1011,1020(9thCir.
2008));
id.
25 (ordering
jurisdictional
discoveryas toplaintiff's
citizenship
in light
ofplaintiff's
“unnecessarily
26 ||crypticdeclarations’);
Murchison CapitalPartners,
L.P.v.Nuance Comme’ns,Inc.,
2013 WL
27 ||3328694, at*1, *4 (N.D.Tex.July2,2013) (ordering
same “[b]lecause
thecourt [couldnot]
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i determine
whether complete
diversity
exists
betweentheparties”
afterplaintiffs
“refusedto. ..
2 provideinformation
initspossession
anditscontrol”).
3 4. Then,theclaims ofany Plaintiffs
who aredeterminedtobe non-diverse
from the
4 ||Removing Defendantsafter
discoveryshouldbe severedand dismissedto preserve
diversity
5|| jurisdiction
overtheremaining
Plaintiffs.
See,
e.g.,
Inre Propecia
(Finasteride)
Prod.Liab.Litig.,
6 ||2013 WL 3729570, at*14-15(E.D.N.Y.May 17,2013) (severing
and remanding
“onlythose
7 ||plaintiffs
whose presencedestroys
diversity”
because
“plaintiffs’
attempttodeny thedefendants
8|| theirright
to removal [byfiling
a multi-plaintiff
complaint]
underminesboth thepurposesof
9 ||permissive
joinderand thebenefits
of consolidation
inmulti-district
litigation’);
infraat 11-12
10|| (collecting
similar
cases).
li 5. Finally,
justasinthelastsetofcases,Plaintiffs
continuetofraudulently
join
local
12|| California
retailers
against
whom no viable
claimsexist.
Butit remains
clear
thatthe
citizenship
of
13|] theRetailer
Defendants
mustbe disregarded
because
theyarefraudulently
joined.
Plaintiffs
Preview
To: Page3 of 125 2020-10-06 20:33:45 (GMT) Dechert, LLPFrom: Taylor, Sarah FILED BY FAX ALAMEDA COUNTY Jonathan Tam (SBN 304143) October 09, 2020 DECHERT LLP CLERKOF One Bush Street, Suite 1600 THESUPERIOR COURT SanFrancisco, CA 94104-4446 ByJoanneDownie, Deputy Telephone: (415)262-4500 CASE NUMBER: Facsimile: (415) 262-4555 RG20073373 Email:jonathan.tam@dechert.com Attorneys forDefendantGlaxoSmithKline LLC [AdditionalCounsel on Signature Page] SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF ALAMEDA ROBERT INGRAM: CHARLES CRANE; CaseNo. RG20073373 CARMINA LAVALLE, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF BRANDON LAVALLE, DECEDENT; NOTICE OF FILING OF MILDRED BRYANT, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF JOHN BRYANT, DECEDENT;, WENDY NOTICE OF REMOVAL PEUSE; DAVID MCCARROLL; KAREN THOMAS; JUANITA PAPANICOLAS; LEONARD BLAIR; MARY MALDONADO, MARY PRICE; MICHAEL AUGUST; RICHARD CABRAL; ROBIN MARZETT; ARTERMEISE JACKSON; BRUCE MACDOUGALL,; KATRINA WINN: RODNEY LENGELE; MARTHA RIOS, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF JOSEFINA RIOS- ESTRADA, DECEDENT; DALE BREMENOUR; WILLIAM ASHFORD; REBECCA FIFE, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF PIOTR BURDA, DECEDENT; BRETT MARTIN; ERIC MCKELVEY; BRIAN GAWLEY; BO PETERSON; JAMES PARKS, ALLISON KERNS; DENISE HERNANDEZ, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF SAMUEL HERNANDEZ, DECEDENT; TIMOTHY SEABAUGH; EARL QUARTERMAN, JR.; ROBERT HOLLABAUGH; FREDERICK GLASS; STEVEN ACEVEDO; JUDY VINCENT; ALYCE BULL; EDNA YOUNGWIRTH; JOAN JONES: JAMES BOYD; SHARRON SHORTER, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF CAROLYN SHORTER, DECEDENT; LOUIS MAKELL; ROBERT JOHNSON; BRETT LAZERUS; FLOYD PATTERSON; PHYLLIS SMITH; TIFENEY WILLIAMS, SHIRLEY BOOTH; JACQUELINE HARROD, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF ROLAND MARTIN, DECEDENT; LAURIE SCOTT; NATALIE JONES, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF MARLOW M.TAYLOR, DECEDENT; SEBASTIAN BEMIS; BARBARA O'GRADY; WILLIAM SWANSON, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF TONYA SWANSON, DECEDENT; HERMA -|- NOTICEOF FILINGOFNOTICE OFREMOVAL To: Page40f125 2020-10-06 20:33:45 (GMT) Dechert, LLPFrom: Taylor, Sarah if DONNER-LEAK; DAVID ROBERTS; DANNY MARLENEE: FREDERICK PERRY; IRENE 2 STECKLER; AND MICHAEL LILLY, 3 Plaintiffs, v. 4 BOEHRINGER INGELHEIM 5 PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.,INCORRECTLY . DESIGNATED AS DOE 1;BOEHRINGER 6 INGELHEIM USA CORPORATION, INCORRECTLY DESIGNATED AS DOE 2; 7 GLAXOSMITHKLINE LLC,INCORRECTLY DESIGNATED ASDOE 3,PFIZER INC., g ||INCORRECTLY DESIGNATED AS DOE 4, SANOFI US SERVICES INC.,INCORRECTLY 9 DESIGNATED AS DOE 5;SANOFLAVENTIS ULS.LLC, INCORRECTLY DESIGNATED AS 19 ||DOE 6;SAFEWAY, INC.,SAFEWAY HEALTH, INC.;THE VONS COMPANIES, INC;GROCERY I OUTLET; KAISER PERMANENTE INTERNATIONAL; AND DOES 7 THROUGH 100 2 INCLUSIVE, Defendants. 13 14 PLEASE TAKE NOTICE THAT onOctober6,2020,DefendantsBoehringer Ingelheim 15 Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Bochringer IngelheimUSA Corporation, GlaxoSmithKline LLC, Pfizer Inc., 16 SanofiUS Services Inc., andSanofi-Aventis U.S.LLC (collectively, Does| through 6,and the "7 “Removing Defendants”) intheabove-captioned actionremovedthis actiontotheUnitedStates 18 District CourtfortheNorthernDistrict ofCalifornia, by filing a Notice of RemovalinthatCourt.A 19 trueandcorrect copyof the Removing Defendants’ Noticeof Removalis annexed hereto asExhibit 20 L. 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 -2- NOTICEOF FILINGOFNOTICE OFREMOVAL To: Page5 of 125 2020-10-06 20:33:45 (GMT) Dechert, LLPFrom: Taylor, Sarah if Accordingly, andpursuant to28 U.S.C.§ 1446(d), this Courtmay proceednofurther unless 2 anduntil thecaseisremanded. 3 4 DATED: October6,2020 DECHERT LLP 5 | 6 Jonathan Tam (SBN 304143) 7 One BushStreet, Suite1600 San Francisco, CA 94104-4446 Telephone: (415)262-4500 9 Facsimile: (415) 262-4555 Email:jonathan.tam@dechert.com 10 Attorneys for Defendant GlaxoSmithKline M LLC 12 . B baad hate 4 Ril nevi 14 SharonD. Mayo (SBN 150469) is Tommy Huynh (SBN 306222) . ARNOLD & PORTER KAYE SCHOLER 16 LLP ThreeEmbarcaderoCenter,10thFloor 17 SanFrancisco, CA 94111-4024 Telephone:415.471.3100 18 Facsimile:415.471.3400 19 sharon.mayo@arnoldporter.com tommy.huynh@arnoldporter.com 20 KathrynM. Podsiadlo (SBN 299438) "4 ARNOLD & PORTER KAYE SCHOLER LLP 22 777 SouthFigueroa Street, 44thFloor LosAngeles,CA 90017-5844 B Telephone:213.243.4000 Facsimile:213.243.4199 24 kathryn.podsiadlo@arnoldporter.com 25 Attorneys for SanofiUS Services Inc.and 26 Sanofi-Aventis U.S. ELC 27 28 -3- NOTICEOF FILINGOFNOTICE OFREMOVAL To: Page6 of 125 2020-10-06 20:33:45 (GMT) Dechert, LLPFrom: Taylor, Sarah % bag Y Oe Bak wer 3 : ae Jessica B. Rydstrom(SBN 256600) WILLIAMS & CONNOLLY LLP 725 12thStreet NW Washington,DC 20005 Telephone: (202)434-5000 Facsimile: (202)434-5029 jrydstrom@we.com Attorney for Pfizer Inc. A ot f’ 4 ph Rae pM buy hiker4 | MichaelB.Shortnacy(SBN 277035) KING & SPALDING LLP 633West Fifth Street, Suite 1600 LosAngeles,CA 90071 Telephone: (213)443-4355 Facsimile: (213) 443-4310 mshortnacy@kslaw.com Attorneys for DefendantBoehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc.and BoehringerIngelheimUSACorporation -4- NOTICEOF FILINGOFNOTICE OFREMOVAL To: Page7 of 125 2020-10-06 20:33:45 (GMT) Dechert, LLP From: Taylor, Sarah EXHIBIT 1 To: Page8 of 125 2020-10-06 20:33:45 (GMT) Dechert, LLPFrom: Taylor, Sarah Case 3:20-cv-06954 Document1 Filed10/06/20 Page 1 of29 Mark S.Cheffo(prohacviceforthcoming) DECHERT LLP 1095 AvenueoftheAmericas New York,NY 10036 Telephone: (212)698-3500 Facsimile: (212)698-3599 Email: mark.cheffo@dechert.com WillW. Sachse(prohacviceforthcoming) DECHERT LLP CiraCentre, 2929 ArchStreet Philadelphia, PA 19104 Telephone: (215)994-4000 Facsimile: (215)994-2222 Email:willsachse@dechert.com Jonathan Tam (SBN 304143) DECHERT LLP One BushStreet, Suite1600 SanFrancisco, CA 94104-4446 Telephone: (415)262-4500 Faesimile: (415)262-4555 Email:jonathan.tam@dechert.com Attorneys forDefendantGlaxoSmithKline LLC [Additional Counsel on Signature Page| UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA ROBERT INGRAM; CHARLES CRANE; CARMINA LAVALLE, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF CaseNo. OF BRANDON LAVALLE, DECEDENT; MILDRED BRYANT, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF NOTICE OF REMOVAL OF ACTION OF JOHN BRYANT, DECEDENT; WENDY PEUSE; DAVID MCCARROLL; KAREN THOMAS; JUANITA PAPANICOLAS; LEONARD DEMAND FOR JURY TRIAL BLAIR; MARY MALDONADO; MARY PRICE; MICHAEL AUGUST; RICHARD CABRAL; ROBIN MARZETT,; ARTERMEISE JACKSON; BRUCE MACDOUGALL; KATRINA WINN; RODNEY LENGELE; MARTHA RIOS, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF JOSEFINA RIOS- ESTRADA, DECEDENT; DALE BREMENOUR; WILLIAM ASHFORD; REBECCA FIFE, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF PIOTR BURDA, DECEDENT; BRETT MARTIN; ERIC MCKELVEY; BRIAN GAWLEY; BO PETERSON; JAMES PARKS; ALLISON KERNS; DENISE HERNANDEZ, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF SAMUEL HERNANDEZ, DECEDENT; TIMOTHY SEABAUGH; EARL QUARTERMAN, JR.; ROBERT HOLLABAUGH; FREDERICK GLASS; NOTICE OF REMOVAL To: Page9 of 125 2020-10-06 20:33:45 (GMT) Dechert, LLPFrom: Taylor, Sarah Case 3:20-cv-06954 Decument1 Filed10/06/20 Page 2 of29 1 || STEVENACEVEDO; JUDY VINCENT; ALYCE BULL; EDNA YOUNGWIRTH; JOAN JONES; 2 || JAMESBOYD; SHARRON SHORTER, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF CAROLYN 3 || SHORTER,DECEDENT; LOUIS MAKELL; ROBERT JOHNSON; BRETT LAZERUS; FLOYD 4|| PATTERSON; PHYLLIS SMITH; TIFENEY WILLIAMS, SHIRLEY BOOTH; JACQUELINE 5 || HARROD, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF ROLAND MARTIN, DECEDENT,; LAURIE 6 || SCOTT; NATALIE JONES, PLAINTIFF ON BEHALF OF MARLOW M.TAYLOR, 7 || DECEDENT; SEBASTIAN BEMIS; BARBARA O'GRADY; WILLIAM SWANSON, PLAINTIFF 8 |}ON BEHALF OF TONYA SWANSON, DECEDENT; HERMA DONNER-LEAK; DAVID 9 |}ROBERTS;DANNY MARLENEE; FREDERICK PERRY; IRENE STECKLER; AND MICHAEL 10|| LILLY, ii Plaintiffs, 12 v. 13 || BOEHRINGER INGELHEIM PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.,INCORRECTLY 14 || DESIGNATED AS DOE 1;BOEHRINGER INGELHEIM USA CORPORATION, 15 | INCORRECTLY DESIGNATED AS DOE 2; GLAXOSMITHKLINE LLC, INCORRECTLY 16 ||DESIGNATED AS DOE 3;PFIZER INC., INCORRECTLY DESIGNATED AS DOE 4; 17 || SANOFIUS SERVICES INC.,INCORRECTLY DESIGNATED AS DOE 5;SANOFI-AVENTIS 18 |}U.S. LLC, INCORRECTLY DESIGNATED AS DOE 6;SAFEWAY, INC.; SAFEWAY HEALTH, 19 |}LINC.; THE VONS COMPANIES, INC;GROCERY OUTLET; KAISER PERMANENTE 20 | INTERNATIONAL; AND DOES 7THROUGH 100 INCLUSIVE, 21 Defendants. 22 23 DEFENDANTS BOEHRINGER INGELHEIM PHARMACEUTICALS, INC., 24 BOEHRINGER INGELHEIM USA CORPORATION, GLAXOSMITHKLINE LLC, PFIZER INC.,SANOFL US SERVICES INC... AND SANOFLAVENTIS U.S.LLC’S 25 NOTICE OF REMOVAL 26 Pursuantto 28 U.S.C. §§ 1332,1441, and 1446,DefendantsBochringer Ingelheim 27 Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Boehringer IngelheimUSA Corporation, GlaxoSmithKline LLC, Pfizer Inc., 28 SanofiUS ServicesInc.,and Sanofi-Aventis U.S. LLC (collectively, the “Removing -|- NOTICE OF REMOVAL To: Page10of 125 2020-10-06 20:33:45 (GMT) Dechert, LLPFrom: Taylor, Sarah Case 3:20-cv-06954 Decumenti1 Filed10/06/20 Page 3 of29 1|| Defendants”)—all ofwhich were improperly and incorrectly named asDoe Defendants—hereby 2 givenotice of removalof this action, Jagram,etal.v. Safeway,Inc., et al., CaseNo. RG20073373, 3 ||from theSuperior Courtof the Stateof California inand forAlamedaCountyto theUnitedStates 4 ||District CourtfortheNorthern District of California.| DefendantsSafewayInc. (incorrectly named 5 as “Safeway,Inc.and SafewayHealth, Inc.”), The Vons Companies,Inc., GroceryOutlet,Inc. 6|| (incorrectly named as “GroceryOutlet”), and KaiserPermanenteInternational (collectively, the 7 “Retailer Defendants”) consent totheremoval. 8 INTRODUCTION 9 1. Inthis mass tort action claimingthat theantacid medication Zantac(ranitidine) causes 10|] various cancers,Plaintiffs’ counselhas deployeda veritable “bag of tricks” to tryto defeat li Removing Defendants’ right to a federal forum. Legg v.Wyeth,428F.3d 1317,1325(LithCir. 12|| 2005)(“Theremovalprocesswas created by Congresstoprotectdefendants. Congressdidnot 13 extendsuchprotection withone hand, and withtheother giveplaintiffs abagof tricks to overcome 14|| it.”(citation omitted)). Thesesame Plaintiffs’ counselpreviously filed 42 substantively identical 15|| casesinCalifornia, whichwereremoved tofederal court and stayed pendingtransfer totheZantac 16 ||MDL intheSouthernDistrict ofFlorida. Whilethe substantive allegations inthisComplaint are 17 essentially thesame asthoseinthefirst round ofcases, Plaintiffs’ counsel has re-engineered this 18|| Complaint(anda raft ofsimilar Complaints) in atransparent attempttomake it“removal-proof.” 19|| (A copyofthe Complaint is attached asExhibitA.).As further explained below,noneof these 20 ||machinations canthwartthe diversity jurisdiction that existsbetweentheproperdefendantsand 21 numerous Plaintiffs. 22 2. First, eventhough theallegations areplainly directed attheRemoving Defendants 23 who werenamed inthefirst roundofcases, Plaintiffs’ counselintentionally omitsthose Defendants 24 ||fromthecaption of the pleadingandinstead mis-identifies themas“DOES |through100.”Butthe 25 Removing Defendants are proper defendantstothecasewho can exercise removalrights despite 26 ||Plaintiffs’ purposely misnaming them as DoeDefendants.Plaintiffs repeatedly and specifically 27 ||identifytheRemoving Defendantsby name inthe body of theComplaintas theparties that ' By removingthisaction, Removing Defendantsdo notwaive,and expresslypreserve, any objections topersonal jurisdiction. -2- NOTICE OF REMOVAL To: Page11of 125 2020-10-06 20:33:45 (GMT) Dechert, LLPFrom: Taylor, Sarah Case 3:20-cv-06954 Documenti Filed10/06/20 Page 4 of29 1|| developedorheld regulatory license for Zantacand,insome imstances, as supposedly knowing 2 ||aboutthe presence ofNDMA intheproduct.And theComplaintrepeatedly describes theDoe 3 Defendantstoinclude the“manufacturers” ofZantacwho theyallege failed tolabeltheproduct 4 ||appropriately. Of course, Plaintiffs’ counsel knows full well who thecompaniesresponsible for 5 manufacturing and labeling Zantacare becausecounsel sued theminthe “first round” ofZantac 6 ||casesfiled inCalifornia state court.The RemovingDefendantsaretherefore properparties tothis 7 ||removalpetition and their citizenship must beconsideredfordiversity purposes. SeeNeng Por 8 Yangv.Nutter,2011 WL 2746191,at*1, *4-5(D.Minn. July14,2011) (granting JohnDoe 9|| defendants’ motiontodismissafter theyremoved); Avon Grp.LLC vy. MosdosChofetzChaim Inc., 10 ||2012 WL 2886697,at*2n.1 (S.D.N.Y. July13,2012)(NengPor “implicitly allowed”“John Doe Ii Defendants[to]removea casefrom state court’); Sandoval v.RepublieServs., Inc., 2018WL 12 1989528,at*3 (C.D.Cal.Apr.24,2018) (“[When a plaintiff's allegations givea definite clue 13 abouttheidentity ofa fictitious defendant.. .thecourtshou/dconsiderthecitizenship ofthe 14|| fictitious defendant.”(emphasis in original; citation omitted)). 15 3. Second, unlikethefirst tranche of cases, Plaintiffs intentionally failtoidentify the 16|| residency ofPlaintiffs toobscurewhetherdiversity exists asto those Plaintiffs. The Courtshould 17|] not allow Plaintiffs’ counsel’sintentional omissionof any allegations regardingPlaintiffs’ 18|] citizenships intheComplainttostandas ajurisdictional obstacle.Removing Defendants’ good 19|| faith investigation reveals thatnofewer than23 of59 Plaintiffs are ofdiverse citizenship to the 20 ||Removing Defendants.As totheremaining Plaintiffs, theCourtshouldorderlimited jurisdictional 21 discovery. See,e.g., BerkeleyResearchGrp., LLC v.UnitedPotato Growers of Am., Inc., 2017WL 22 ||952680,at*2 (N.D.Cal. Mar. 13, 2017) (“Discovery may beappropriately granted wherepertinent 23 facts bearingonthequestion of jurisdiction arecontroverted or whereamore satisfactory showing 24 ||of the factsis necessary.’” (quoting Boschettov.Hansing, 539 F.3d1011,1020(9thCir. 2008)); id. 25 (ordering jurisdictional discoveryas toplaintiff's citizenship in light ofplaintiff's “unnecessarily 26 ||crypticdeclarations’); Murchison CapitalPartners, L.P.v.Nuance Comme’ns,Inc., 2013 WL 27 ||3328694, at*1, *4 (N.D.Tex.July2,2013) (ordering same “[b]lecause thecourt [couldnot] -3- NOTICE OF REMOVAL To: Page120f 125 2020-10-06 20:33:45 (GMT) Dechert, LLPFrom: Taylor, Sarah Case 3:20-cv-06954 Decument1 Filed10/06/20 Page 5 of29 i determine whether complete diversity exists betweentheparties” afterplaintiffs “refusedto. .. 2 provideinformation initspossession anditscontrol”). 3 4. Then,theclaims ofany Plaintiffs who aredeterminedtobe non-diverse from the 4 ||Removing Defendantsafter discoveryshouldbe severedand dismissedto preserve diversity 5|| jurisdiction overtheremaining Plaintiffs. See, e.g., Inre Propecia (Finasteride) Prod.Liab.Litig., 6 ||2013 WL 3729570, at*14-15(E.D.N.Y.May 17,2013) (severing and remanding “onlythose 7 ||plaintiffs whose presencedestroys diversity” because “plaintiffs’ attempttodeny thedefendants 8|| theirright to removal [byfiling a multi-plaintiff complaint] underminesboth thepurposesof 9 ||permissive joinderand thebenefits of consolidation inmulti-district litigation’); infraat 11-12 10|| (collecting similar cases). li 5. Finally, justasinthelastsetofcases,Plaintiffs continuetofraudulently join local 12|| California retailers against whom no viable claimsexist. Butit remains clear thatthe citizenship of 13|] theRetailer Defendants mustbe disregarded because theyarefraudulently joined. Plaintiffs