#1 by pending actionsMDL 2738
Talcum Powder
Federal claims alleging that talc products caused ovarian cancer or mesothelioma are coordinated in New Jersey.
- Pending
- 68,914
- Federal district
- D. New Jersey
Federal mass tort intelligence
Follow the cases.Understand the numbers.
Court-sourced case counts, clearly labeled settlement status, and plain-English context. Every figure carries the report it came from.
Original sourcesEvery figure datedCorrections published
01
Numbers with provenanceEvery count links back to a dated source.
02
Estimates labeled honestlyProjections never masquerade as confirmed payouts.
03
Changes that mean somethingWe explain what moved, not just that it moved.
Largest active dockets
The cases shaping the federal mass tort landscape
Ranked by actions pending in the JPML's August 3, 2026 report. The report covers 162 active federal dockets; we publish a full sourced dossier for 15 of them and add more as we can verify each one. Federal totals exclude state-court and unfiled claims.
#2 by pending actionsMDL 2846
Bard Hernia Mesh
Federal cases involving certain Bard and Davol polypropylene hernia mesh products are coordinated in Ohio.
- Pending
- 23,321
- Federal district
- S.D. Ohio
#3 by pending actionsMDL 2873
AFFF Firefighting Foam
The AFFF docket coordinates federal claims involving alleged exposure to PFAS-containing firefighting foam.
- Pending
- 15,246
- Federal district
- D. South Carolina
#4 by pending actionsMDL 3060
Hair Relaxer
Federal lawsuits concerning certain hair relaxer products and alleged cancer risks are coordinated in Illinois.
- Pending
- 11,779
- Federal district
- N.D. Illinois
#5 by pending actionsMDL 2789
Proton-Pump Inhibitors
The federal PPI docket coordinates claims involving certain heartburn medicines and alleged kidney injuries.
- Pending
- 11,321
- Federal district
- D. New Jersey
#6 by pending actionsMDL 2666
Bair Hugger
Federal claims involving Bair Hugger surgical warming devices and alleged infection risks are coordinated in Minnesota.
- Pending
- 8,407
- Federal district
- D. Minnesota
Why Settlement Advocate
Most settlement pages start with a number. We start with the record.
Search results are crowded with unsupported payout ranges, recycled filing totals, and “latest” updates carrying no date. Sorting what a court actually did from what someone expects it to do becomes work.
We separate verified events, reported allegations, and analysis, and label each one. Where an official settlement program does not exist, the page says so.
Every count on this site resolves from one transcribed source, so a tracker's headline figure and the sentence beneath it cannot disagree.
Read our editorial standardsResearch desk
Go beyond the headline
Focused reports on court timelines, case-count movement, scientific evidence, labels, and what settlement documents actually establish.
Court timeline
Depo-Provera Lawsuit Timeline: The Court Record, Month by Month
A dated, source-led account of MDL 3140, from its February 2025 creation through the June 2026 global-agreement disclosure and the next scheduled expert-evidence hearing.
Published Read analysis
Court timeline
GLP-1 Lawsuit Timeline: How the Federal GI Litigation Reached MDL 3094
A dated guide to the federal gastrointestinal-injury proceeding, from the February 2024 transfer order to 2026 expert and summary-judgment scheduling.
Published Read analysis
Talc litigation timeline
Talcum Powder Lawsuit Timeline: The MDL, Bankruptcy Detours, and the 2026 Evidence Review
The federal talc docket has moved through centralization, expert-evidence rulings, three bankruptcy attempts, and a renewed Rule 702 review. This dated timeline separates those procedural events from state trials, settlements, and scientific findings.
Published Read analysis
Roblox litigation timeline
Roblox Lawsuit Timeline: How the Child Exploitation MDL Reached 170 Federal Cases
The Roblox child sexual exploitation and assault MDL is new, fast-moving, and distinct from the older social-media addiction docket. Here are the dated court events without turning allegations into findings.
Published Read analysis
Hair relaxer timeline
Hair Relaxer Lawsuit Timeline: From the Sister Study to 11,877 Pending Federal Cases
Research on uterine and ovarian cancer triggered thousands of lawsuits, but the scientific studies and MDL orders answer different questions. This timeline tracks both without treating allegations as findings.
Published Read analysis
AFFF litigation chronology
AFFF Lawsuit Timeline: How the Federal PFAS Litigation Reached Its Current Stage
A dated, source-led guide to MDL 2873, from federal centralization through water-system settlements and the still-developing personal-injury bellwether process. Status verified July 10, 2026.
Published Read analysis
Settlement literacy
Read the docket like an insider
Short, practical guides for understanding what legal headlines leave out.
MDL basics
What Is an MDL? A Plain-English Guide
How federal multidistrict litigation works, what it does not decide, and why an MDL case count is not the same as a settlement.
Read guide
Data literacy
How to Read MDL Case Counts Without Getting Misled
What pending and historical action counts mean, what they leave out, and how to compare monthly federal MDL reports.
Read guide
Settlement literacy
Settlement Amounts Explained: Estimates, Tiers, and Red Flags
How settlement programs may value claims, why averages can deceive, and the warning signs of an unsupported payout estimate.
Read guide
Verification guide
How to Verify a Lawsuit Settlement Update
A five-source checklist for separating official settlement developments from recycled headlines and attorney advertising.
Read guide