Where to File in Illinois
MDL 3043 — In re: Acetaminophen — ASD/ADHD Products Liability Litigation is centralized in the Southern District of New York before U.S. District Judge Denise Cote in Manhattan. All federal Tylenol-autism cases involving prenatal acetaminophen exposure and alleged neurodevelopmental injury have been consolidated there for coordinated pretrial proceedings.
Statute of Limitations — Illinois: Illinois Code of Civil Procedure § 13-211 tolls for minors until age 18; 2 years from ASD/ADHD diagnosis.
Illinois cases filed in federal district court are subject to conditional transfer orders (CTOs) issued by the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (JPML), which route them to S.D.N.Y. MDL 3043. State-court cases must be removed to federal court before transfer can occur. Cases pending in Illinois state courts remain outside the MDL unless removed.
IMPORTANT — Case Status Uncertainty: In October 2023, Judge Cote issued a Daubert order excluding plaintiffs' general causation expert witnesses, finding their testimony failed to meet the reliability standards of Federal Rule of Evidence 702. This ruling led to mass dismissals of cases in MDL 3043. Appeals are ongoing and the litigation's viability remains significantly uncertain. Prospective claimants should consult with counsel about the current posture of the MDL before filing.
Your Legal Team
David Kwon
Partner
Chicago, IL
David Kwon is a Chicago-based mass tort attorney with 15 years of experience litigating product liability and pharmaceutical injury cases in Illinois's most plaintiff-favorable venues — Cook, St. Clair, and Madison counties. His background in psychology informs his work on neurodevelopmental injury claims, including his ability to translate complex ADHD and autism diagnostic criteria into compelling evidence of harm for juries. David has been actively involved in Illinois acetaminophen-autism cases since 2023, working with neuropsychologists, developmental pediatricians, and epidemiologists to build Frye-compliant expert testimony that distinguishes Illinois state proceedings from the federal MDL's Daubert difficulties. He represents both ASD-only and ADHD-only claimants and has particular expertise in evaluating ADHD-only cases, which are often overlooked by mass tort practices focused exclusively on autism diagnoses.
Education
- J.D., Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law (2011)
- B.A., Psychology, University of Chicago (2008)