Maiorana v. United States Mineral Products Co.

JOSÉ A. CABRANES, Circuit Judge:

This case marks the convergence of epidemiological evidence, probabilistic causation in carcinogenic torts, and the important issue of the extent to which a trial court may assess the sufficiency of scientific evidence, in light of the Supreme Court’s recent holding in Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, Inc., — U.S. -, 113 S.Ct. 2786, 125 L.Ed.2d 469 (1993). That decision enlarged district courts’ “gatekeeping” roles in appraising the admissibility of scientific evidence. The central question before us is the standard governing federal judges’ evaluations…