MDL 3094 sets the expert evidence hearing that will decide the litigation's direction

The judge overseeing the consolidated federal lawsuits alleging that GLP-1 drugs caused serious gastrointestinal injuries has locked in the schedule for the phase most likely to decide where the litigation goes. On April 30, 2026, U.S. District Judge Karen S. Marston entered Case Management Order No. 32 in MDL 3094 in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, extending briefing deadlines for Rule 702 expert challenges and summary-judgment motions and reserving a hearing window in September 2026 ^[1][2].

The motions cover three "cross-cutting" questions the court prioritized back in August 2024: how gastroparesis is reliably diagnosed, whether the FDA-approved warning labels were adequate and whether federal law preempts state failure-to-warn claims, and general causation — that is, whether these drugs are capable of causing the injuries alleged at all ^[2].

What the order actually sets

Opening briefs were due May 19, 2026, with opposition and reply briefing running through the summer ^[2]. Two trackers reviewing the public docket list the reserved Rule 702 hearing window as September 10 through 18, 2026 ^[1][2]; the court's own MDL 3094 page lists the hearing as running September 14 through 18. The sources differ on the exact days, so the precise dates may narrow as the hearing approaches.

MDL 3094 is captioned In re: Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Receptor Agonists (GLP-1 RAs) Products Liability Litigation and was centralized on February 2, 2024, with 37 actions ^[2]. It has grown steadily: 3,546 pending actions on April 1, 2026, 3,636 on May 1, 3,763 on June 1 ^[1], and 3,848 as of the JPML's July 1, 2026 statistics report ^[2].

The medicines at issue span both major manufacturers. Court materials identify Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus (semaglutide), plus Victoza and Saxenda (liraglutide), as Novo Nordisk products in the litigation, and Trulicity (dulaglutide) plus Mounjaro and Zepbound (tirzepatide) as Eli Lilly products ^[2]. The short-form complaint names four default defendants: Novo Nordisk Inc., Novo Nordisk A/S, Eli Lilly and Company, and Lilly USA, LLC ^[2]. Whatever the court rules on preemption, warnings and general causation applies across those products, not just to semaglutide.

Plaintiffs allege gastroparesis, ileus, intestinal obstruction, ischemic bowel, pancreatitis, gallbladder injury and other harms, and say the labels did not adequately warn ^[2]. These are unproven allegations; no court has found either manufacturer liable, no class has been certified, and no settlement or claim form exists ^[2].

Why it matters for patients

This hearing is the litigation's next real inflection point, and it will be a set of court rulings rather than a jury verdict ^[2]. If the judge excludes plaintiffs' general-causation experts or grants summary judgment on preemption, thousands of pending cases could be sharply narrowed or ended. If the claims survive, the litigation moves toward selecting bellwether test cases ^[2].

For people taking these drugs, nothing about the court schedule changes the labeling or availability of any medicine today. The FDA-approved labels have long warned of at least some gastrointestinal effects such as nausea and vomiting; plaintiffs contend conditions like gastroparesis were not specifically warned about ^[2]. Whether new warning language ever results from this litigation is not yet known.

The court has already tightened who can stay in the MDL. On August 15, 2025, Judge Marston required plaintiffs alleging drug-induced gastroparesis to show the diagnosis rested on a properly performed gastric emptying study — scintigraphy, breath testing or a wireless motility capsule — documenting delayed emptying ^[1]. Filings kept rising after that order ^[1].

Anyone encountering advertising that promises a GLP-1 "settlement payout" should know that no settlement exists in MDL 3094 and there is no claim form; participation means retaining counsel to file an individual case ^[2].

What happens next

Briefing continues through the summer of 2026, with the Rule 702 hearing reserved for September ^[1][2]. Status conferences are set for June 23, July 14, October 13, November 17 and December 15, 2026 ^[1]. No bellwether trial date has been set, and a first trial would realistically fall in 2027 at the earliest if the claims survive ^[2]. Separately, vision-loss claims alleging NAION sit in a different proceeding, MDL 3163, with 110 pending actions as of June 1, 2026 ^[1][2].