Rule 16.1.Multidistrict Litigation

Last verified June 30, 2026

In one sentenceRule 16.1, effective December 1, 2025, is the first federal rule written for multidistrict litigation: after the Judicial Panel transfers cases, the transferee court should hold an initial management conference and have the parties submit a report on leadership counsel and an orderly pretrial plan.

Full Text of Rule 16.1

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(a) Initial Management Conference. After the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation transfers actions, the transferee court should schedule an initial management conference to develop an initial plan for orderly pretrial activity in the MDL proceedings.

(b) Report for the Conference.

(1) Submitting a Report. The transferee court should order the parties to meet and to submit a report to the court before the conference.

(2) Required Content: the Parties' Views on Leadership Counsel and Other Matters. The report must address any matter the court designates—which may include any matter in Rule 16—and, unless the court orders otherwise, the parties' views on:

(A) whether leadership counsel should be appointed and, if so:

(i) the timing of the appointments;

(ii) the structure of leadership counsel;

(iii) the procedure for selecting leadership and whether the appointments should be reviewed periodically;

(iv) their responsibilities and authority in conducting pretrial activities and any role in facilitating resolution of the MDL proceedings;

(v) the proposed methods for regularly communicating with and reporting to the court and nonleadership counsel;

(vi) any limits on activity by nonleadership counsel; and

(vii) whether and when to establish a means for compensating leadership counsel;

(B) any previously entered scheduling or other orders that should be vacated or modified;

(D) how to manage the direct filing of new actions in the MDL proceedings; and

(E) whether related actions have been—or are expected to be—filed in other courts, and whether to adopt methods for coordinating with them.

(3) Additional Required Content: the Parties' Initial Views on Various Matters. Unless the court orders otherwise, the report also must address the parties' initial views on:

(A) whether consolidated pleadings should be prepared;

(B) how and when the parties will exchange information about the factual bases for their claims and defenses;

(D) any likely pretrial motions;

(E) whether the court should consider any measures to facilitate resolving some or all actions before the court;

(F) whether any matters should be referred to a magistrate judge or a master; and

(G) the principal factual and legal issues likely to be presented.

(4) Permitted Content. The report may include any other matter that the parties wish to bring to the court's attention.

(c) Initial Management Order. After the conference, the court should enter an initial management order addressing the matters in Rule 16.1(b) and, in the court's discretion, any other matters. This order controls the course of the proceedings unless the court modifies it.

End

Amendment History

(Adopted April 23, 2025, effective December 1, 2025.)

Plain-English Summary

Rule 16.1 is brand new — it took effect December 1, 2025, and is the first Federal Rule of Civil Procedure aimed specifically at multidistrict litigation (MDL), the large consolidated proceedings created when the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation transfers many related cases to a single court for coordinated pretrial handling.

After such a transfer, the rule says the transferee court should schedule an initial management conference. The court may direct the parties to meet and submit a report addressing the matters that shape a complex MDL — for example, consolidating pleadings, how discovery should be organized and conducted, the schedule for pretrial motions, and whether and how to appoint leadership counsel to act for the many plaintiffs or defendants. The court may then enter an initial management order. The rule gives MDL judges a shared starting framework that the rules previously left to ad hoc practice.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Rule 16.1?

The first federal rule written specifically for multidistrict litigation. It directs the transferee court to hold an initial management conference and have the parties report on how to organize the MDL.

When did Rule 16.1 take effect?

December 1, 2025.

What does the Rule 16.1 report address?

Matters such as consolidating pleadings, organizing and conducting discovery, the timing of pretrial motions, and whether and how to appoint leadership counsel.

Source & verification. The rule text and amendment history are reproduced verbatim from the official Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (Fed. R. Civ. P. 16.1), a public-domain work of the U.S. Government. Prescribed by the United States Supreme Court under the Rules Enabling Act. The plain-English summary is original and written by us. Last verified June 30, 2026. · Official source

Also known as: FRCP 16.1Fed. R. Civ. P. 16.1multidistrict litigationMDLMDL initial management conferenceMDL leadership counsel