Outbreak Judge Gets National Award

By Walter F. Roche Jr.

The federal judge who presided over a massive case involving the claims of victims of a deadly 2012 fungal meningitis has won a national award for judges.
Awarded the Edward J. Devitt Distinguished Service to Justice Award was senior U.S. District Judge Rya Zobel.
The 88-year-old jurist was cited for her work both on the bench and on judiciary panels dealing with such issues as the adoption of data processing systems.
In nominating her for the annual award, judges on the federal court in Boston cited her "exceptional and distinguished career."
Zobel made several key rulings in the fungal meningitis litigation which resulted in some $140 million being distributed to over 2,000 victims or their survivors.
The last distributions to victims are scheduled for March.
The $140 million came from the former owners of the New England Compounding Center and related firms.
According to the nomination Zobel and her brother escaped from armed East German soldiers to escape from East Germany after their parents had been sent to Nazi prison camps. Eventually they secured passage to the United States.