Walton v. Bayer Corp.

A citizen of Illinois brought suit against several non-Illinois companies and one Illinois company, alleging failure to warn with respect to side effects of Yazmin birth control pills. The defendants removed to federal court, claiming improper joinder. The district court dismissed the Illinois pharmacy owner, restoring diversity, and dismissed the suit after the plaintiff abandoned the case. The Seventh Circuit affirmed, applying the "learned intermediary doctrine" and reasoning that the pharmacy had no duty to warn, absent knowledge of a particular susceptibility. The "common defense" exception does not serve as a basis for remand because the plaintiff alleged that the other defendants concealed information.