We’ve by no means seen a case fairly like Michaels v. Genzyme Corp., 2023 WL 8828003 (S.D. Ailing. Dec. 21, 2023), earlier than, and we hope we don’t once more. Michaels took the “proximate” out of proximate trigger.
Right here’s why we are saying that. Michaels was filed in 2023 over “a paternity take a look at that was performed in 1989.” Id. at *1. That’s proper – the alleged product use was 34 years earlier than the swimsuit was filed. It got here again adverse for paternity. That allegedly precipitated the mother and father (each of whom are plaintiffs) to divorce, and plaintiff-mother then remarried, to the individual “judicially decided” to be the daddy of the plaintiff-child. Id. So three plaintiffs, the divorced mom and father, and the kid examined for paternity
Thirty-one years later, the plaintiff daughter allegedly had a DNA retest (presumably with a contemporary, far more scientifically superior take a look at), and claims “take a look at outcomes confirmed a 99.9999997% likelihood” of paternity, which was then purportedly confirmed by a second DNA take a look at. Id. at *2. So the Michael plaintiffs, exercising 20-20 hindsight, sued the unique 1989 take a look at producer for principally each unhealthy factor that had occurred to them over the previous 30 years.
After a few minor pace bumps (res ipsa loquitur and fraud, id., at *2-3), Michaels will get to the principle occasions. First, the statute of limitations. Whereas it was undisputed that the related statute of limitations was two years, and that the DNA take a look at at difficulty “occurred greater than 34 years in the past,” plaintiff skated (for now) on the statute of limitations. “A plaintiff needn’t anticipate and try and plead round affirmative defenses, together with these pertaining to the statute of limitations.” Id. at 3 (quotation and citation marks omitted). So Michaels OKed, for now, a 34-years-stale lawsuit.
Much more weird was the ruling on proximate trigger, which “is a vital aspect of any negligence motion.” Id. at *4 (quotation and citation marks omitted). Plaintiffs claimed that the defendant is responsible for the a long time outdated legal conduct of a third-party. The faulty DNA take a look at, supposedly precipitated the plaintiff-parents’ divorce, adopted by the plaintiff-mother marrying the person she thought was the plaintiff-daughter’s father, adopted by plaintiff daught being “abused by her putative father . . . who has since [2014] been incarcerated.” Id. at *3. That’s a breath-takingly attenuated chain of causation if we’ve ever seen one. The alleged abuser had been “judicially decided” to be the genetic father (what about his DNA take a look at?). Id. at *1. The abuser himself was criminally convicted and is in jail, and has no relationship – “particular” or in any other case – with the producer defendant. So, along with the intense passage of time, there are these two, unbiased superseding causes – a courtroom order and third-party legal exercise.
Past that, in Michaels there may be the alleged “negligence,” which seems to be nothing greater than that the defendant’s take a look at returned a false adverse. No genetic take a look at – not now, and definitely not again in 1989, is 100% correct, and people form of dangers are usually the themes of warnings, along with being generally identified. Michaels is a negligence motion, and the plaintiff mother and father will face comparative negligence points for deciding to divorce, primarily based on one paternity take a look at, with no affirmation by any comparable take a look at administered to the opposite candidate for fatherhood. If there have been such a second take a look at in 1989 (which we are able to’t say for positive), then it needed to fail as properly, given the criticism’s allegations. So why is one failure actionable, however the different not?
Michaels is a far-fetched lawsuit that we expect mustn’t have gotten to first base. It’s an instance of but-for causation run mad. It actually mustn’t get to second base. DNA take a look at producers can’t be made insurers of each potential consequence of a false adverse (or false constructive) irrespective of what number of years later that consequence might have occurred.
