Lone Pine order

A Lone Pine order is a court order in mass toxic tort cases that requires plaintiffs to show:

(1) the identity of the chemical or substance that caused the injury;

(2) the specific disease, illness, or injury caused by the substance; and

(3) a causal link between exposure to the substance and the plaintiff's injury.

Some Lone Pine orders also require plaintiffs to show:

(4) the amount of the substance or chemical to which plaintiffs were exposed;

(5) expert medical opinions to exclude other causes; and

(6) specific dates of exposure to the toxic substance.

The precedent for the Lone Pine order is Lore v. Lone Pine Corp., a New Jersey complaint against a landfill that was dismissed by the judge for failure by the plaintiffs to provide this showing in a timely manner.

Sources

• John T. Burnett - Lone Pine orders: A wolf in sheep's clothing for environmental and toxic tort litigation