In the Chinese Drywall  MDL, certain plaintiffs recently moved for leave to amend their Class Action Complaint to expand the class definition as to defendant Taishan Gypsum, from a Virginia state-wide class to a national class of all persons allegedly impacted by defective drywall made by that defendant. Plaintiffs assert that there will be no undue delay nor prejudice to defendants from the change; the amendment does not alter the proposed sub-classes as to other defendants who are the builders and installation contractors who allegedly installed the product. The amendment would also include new assertion of a violation of the consumer fraud acts of the various states. In re: Chinese-Manufactured Drywall Products Liability Litigation, No. 09-md-02047 (E.D. La.).

An Omnibus [Proposed] Class Action Complaint is to be filed in the MDL on or before December 9, 2009 by the plaintiffs against another defendant, Knauf Plasterboard (Tianjin) Co., Ltd (“KPT”) and other defendants who were involved in the manufacture, sale, importation, brokerage, distribution, construction and installation of homes containing KPT drywall, and any others who were involved in the stream of commerce for the KPT drywall. In order to assist in the consolidation and efficient handling of claims by affected homeowners, defendant KPT has apparently agreed to accept service of process for homeowner plaintiffs who are to be named in an Omnibus Amended Complaint, and waive its right to demand service of process through the Hague Convention. (We have posted about the issues related to suits against foreign defendants before.) However, to be eligible for inclusion in this Omnibus [Proposed] Class Action Complaint and the service waiver, homeowners must provide, by no later than December 2, 2009, sufficient indicia that the homes in question contain KPT drywall (e.g., photographs, samples, visual inspections or reports identifying KPT markings on drywall in the home), and must also submit by December 14, 2009, a fully completed and executed Plaintiff Profile Form, in accordance with PTO #11. The complaint will not be amended to include additional named plaintiffs after it is filed, the court has indicated.