
    In re Minnesota Vitamin Antitrust Litigation.
    No. C6-99-1909.
    Supreme Court of Minnesota.
    Feb. 17, 2000.
   ORDER

This litigation currently consists of five actions, identified on the attached addendum, filed in five different district courts. The complaints claim damages on behalf of classes of plaintiffs based on alleged violation of the state antitrust laws in the sale and distribution of vitamins and vitamin products. The court is informed that additional similar actions may be filed. Defendants moved for transfer and consolidation of the actions before a single district court judge. All plaintiffs in the five actions and all defendants who have appeared in connection with the motion have agreed that the cases should be transferred to a single judge.

These actions involve similar questions of law and fact, the potential for duplica-tive discovery and other common issues or problems. The same industry defendants are involved in the multiple claims. The class of plaintiffs alleged in each of the actions is either identical or overlapping in large degree.

The court has determined that the interests of the parties and the judiciary will be furthered by a uniform and coordinated system of litigation management to eliminate duplicative discovery, prevent inconsistent pretrial rulings and conserve the resources of the parties, their counsel and the judiciary.

IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that, pursuant to Minn.Stat. §§ 480.16 and 2.724 (1998), the Honorable Gregg E. Johnson of the Second Judicial District, having consented, be appointed to hear and decide all matters, including pretrial and trial proceedings, in the vitamin antitrust cases currently pending in the Minnesota state district courts and any future actions filed in Minnesota state district courts raising similar claims arising from the same alleged conduct. To facilitate the identification and management of these cases, all documents served and filed from the date of this order shall in addition to the individual case captions, bear the general case caption “In Re: Minnesota Vitamin Antitrust Litigation.”

The Clerk of Appellate Courts shall mail a copy of this order to all counsel who have appeared in conjunction with this motion and who are listed in the attached addendum, to the district court judges assigned to the cases in the courts in which they were filed, to the court administrators in the counties in which the cases were filed, and to the chief judges and district administrators in the districts in which the cases are now pending, as well as to Judge Johnson, Chief Judge Lawrence Cohen and the district and court administrator in the Second Judicial District. If counsel for the moving defendants are aware of any parties who have appeared in any of the pending actions that are not represented on the appended list of counsel, they shall serve a copy of this order on counsel for those parties forthwith.

ADDENDUM

I. PENDING CASES

Denise DeNardi v. F. Hoffman LaRoche, Ltd., et al.

No. 99-3123, Hennepin County District Court

Thomas Murr v. F. Hoffman LaRoche, Ltd., et al.

No. 19-C9-99-9673, Dakota County District Court

Custom Nutrition, Inc. and Brinton Veterinary Supply, Inc. v. F. Hoffman LaRoche, Ltd., et al.

No. 34-C4-99-01274 (DMS), Kandiyohi County District Court

Big Valley Milling, Inc. v. F. Hoffman LaRoche, Ltd., et al.

No. Cl-99-405, Chippewa County District Court

Form-A-Feed, Inc., et al. v. Akzo Nobel, Inc., et al.

No. 43-C0-99-000856, McLeod County District Court

II. LIST OF COUNSEL

Mr. Wood R. Foster, Jr.

Mr. Jordan M. Lewis

SIEGEL, BRILL, GREUPNER, DUFFY & FOSTER, P.A.

1300 Washington Square

100 Washington Avenue South

Minneapolis, Minnesota 55401

Mr. Dean A. LeDoux

Mr. Michael E. Martinez

GRAY, PLANT, MOOTY, MOOTY '& BENNETT, P.A.

3400 City Center

33 South Sixth Street

Minneapolis, Minnesota 55402-3796

Mr. Michael W. Unger

RIDER, BENNETT, EGAN & ARUN-DEL, L.L.P.

333 South Seventh Street

Suite 2000

Minneapolis, Minnesota 55402

Mr. James Volling

FAEGRE & BENSON, L.L.P.

2200 Norwest Center

Minneapolis, Minnesota 55402-3901

Mr. William L. Sippel

Mr. James C. Zacharski

Mr. Andrew S. Hansen

OPPENHEIMER, WOLFF & DONNELLY L.L.P.

Plaza VII Building, Suite 3400

45 South Seventh Street

Minneapolis, Minnesota 55402

Mr. Todd Wind

FREDRIKSON & BYRON

1100 International Center

900 2nd Avenue South

Minneapolis, Minnesota 55402

Mr. Mark D. Savin

Ms. Ahna M. Thoresen

FAEGRE & BENSON, L.L.P.

2200 Norwest Center

90 South Seventh Street

Minneapolis, Minnesota 55402-3901

Mr. Neil Buethe

BRIGGS & MORGAN

2200 First National Bank Building

332 Minnesota Street

St. Paul, Minnesota 55101

Mr. Samuel D. Heins

Mr. Daniel E. Gustafson

Ms. Karla M. Gluek

Mr. Vincent J. Esades

HEINS, MILLS, & OLSON, P.L.C.

700 Northstar East

608 Second Avenue South

Minneapolis, Minnesota 55402

Mr. Timothy D. Battin

BAINBRIDGE & STRAUS

5408 Port Royal Road

Springfield, Virginia 22151

Mr. Seymour Mansfield

MANSFIELD, TANICK & COHEN

900 Second Avenue South

Suite 1560

Minneapolis, Minnesota 55402 ,

Mr. William Pentelovitch

MASLON, EDELMAN, BORMAN & BRAND, L.L.P.

90 S. Seventh Street, Suite 3300

Minneapolis, Minnesota 55402-4140

Mr. Lewis A. Remele, Jr.

BASSFORD, LOCKHART, TRUES-DELL.& BRIGGS

33 S. Sixth Street, Suite 3550

Minneapolis, Minnesota 55402-3787

Mr. Daniel Shulman

SHULMAN, WALCOTT <& SHULMAN, P.A.

121 Franklin Avenue W.

Minneapolis, Minnesota 55404

Mr. Joseph T. Dixon, Jr.

HENSON & EFRON, P.A.

400 Second Avenue S., Suite 1200

Minneapolis, Minnesota 55401

Mr. Christopher M. Daniels

CALDECOTT, WHEELER, SEARLES, DANIELS, FORRO

10 S. Fifth Street, Suite 900

Minneapolis, Minnesota 55402  