Venable LLP
Product Liability and Toxic Torts
Venable attorneys are highly experienced in the full range of product liability and toxic tort litigation involving the major issues of recent times. Clients across the U.S. rely on Venable for our outstanding record as lead counsel in high-stakes cases.
As lead counsel, we have defeated individual suits and class actions based on a variety of mass tort claims. We manage local, regional and national litigation for Fortune 500 and other companies.
In addition, we are often called on by other law firms for our understanding of engineering and scientific issues and our ability to work with experts to present sophisticated scientific concepts in plain and understandable language. We have deep knowledge in a wide variety of industries, augmented by our years of experience dealing with complex issues, cutting-edge business tactics and the hard realities of investigations and litigation.
VENABLE: DECADES OF EXPERIENCE IN MAJOR PRODUCTS CASES
You get good at product liability defense by actually doing it. A lot of it.
The product liability world is constantly evolving. Science and technology continually present tools that improve analysis. Plaintiffs adopt radically new tactics. Judges and juries develop new sensitivities. But each new twist develops from and is absorbed by what has come before.
Our first-hand experience in the major cases of the past 20 years gives us a firm base for innovation and creativity in addressing the latest issues and challenges in defending product manufacturers. Clients call on us for product liability defense because of our track record. They know that we are immersed in their businesses and that we have the know-how to deliver a winning verdict.
Pharmaceuticals: We are national coordinating counsel in product liability cases involving an analgesic medication and cases involving hormone replacement therapy. As national counsel in lawsuits involving a hemostatic product recalled by a Fortune 500 pharmaceutical company, we developed expert witnesses to successfully defend against allegations of a causal relationship between use of the recalled product and the alleged injuries.
Vaccines: We are regional counsel in nationwide litigation involving allegations of injury from thimerosal, a preservative previously used in vaccines. In addition, serving as lead counsel in more than 100 cases, we are responsible for development of expert witnesses, document collection and the manufacturer’s fact investigation.
Venable has assisted another vaccine manufacturer in litigation pending in a foreign country involving allegations of injury resulting from use of the vaccine.
Latex gloves: Venable was retained by a medical products manufacturer to help develop its defense in nationwide litigation. We developed experts in epidemiology, allergy, manufacturing, warnings, infectious diseases and pulmonology, and coordinated the preparation of experts as they were assigned for trial in each of 600 cases. Venable was also part of the trial team that tried the first cases in California and Texas. Both cases resulted in defense verdicts.
Cellular phones: Venable helped secure a resounding victory for the cell-phone industry with a decision in the Maryland U.S. District Court that ended an $800 million cancer lawsuit against three Fortune 500 providers. The decision has been affirmed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.
Breast implants: As one of six members of a national trial team for silicone breast implant cases, Venable helped prepare defense experts and deposed plaintiffs’ experts in silicone chemistry, rheumatology, epidemiology, pathology, plastic surgery and FDA regulations.
Five cases were tried to verdict (each lasting more than six weeks). Venable participated on the defense team representing three implant defendants before a national science panel that issued a report finding no reliable scientific basis to support the plaintiffs’ causation arguments. We also represented our client in its insurance-coverage litigation.
Benzene/diesel: In the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, we won a defense verdict for a Fortune 10 oil company and other defendants in a wrongful death action alleging that the decedent had contracted leukemia from exposure to benzene in gasoline products.
Vinyl chloride: Representing several clients, Venable helped obtain summary judgment in a lawsuit filed against more than 70 defendants in the vinyl chloride industry. Venable was instrumental in developing the medical evidence to refute causation and in challenging plaintiffs’ experts. The court granted summary judgment based on plaintiffs’ failure to establish general causation.
Asbestos: Venable has been at the forefront in defending clients in every phase of the asbestos litigation—beginning with the asbestos-in-buildings litigation (1984–1989) and then the traditional insulation defendant litigation, including the representation of one of the defendants in two lengthy mass consolidated trials, and then the low-profile/low-dose defendants and premises defendants (beginning in 1989 and continuing to today). Venable attorneys have briefed and argued a multitude of legal and factual issues in trial and appellate courts.
What's next? We’re engaged as national counsel and co-counsel in major litigation involving pharmaceutical and other products that we can’t mention here. Our outstanding track record makes us a logical choice to be lead counsel or a key member of the defense team in any matter that hinges on causation of injury by a product of any type.
Litigation
* Appellate Litigation
* Class Action Litigation
* Commercial Litigation
* Corporate Governance and Investigations
* Intellectual Property Litigation
* Labor and Employment
* Product Liability and Toxic Torts
* SEC Investigations and White Collar Defense
In an era in which “paper†litigation has become a way of life at most major law firms, Venable is still known for its trial lawyers. We churn out motions and other litigation paper with the best of them, but our core skills are preparing for trial and persuading judges and juries to agree with your view of the law and the facts.
We try cases in virtually every area of trial practice and across a wide range of issues. With more than 200 trial lawyers/litigators, we are large enough to handle any type of problem.
Many of us acquired our trial skills in the most demanding environment—in the trenches as assistant U.S. attorneys and as prosecutors for regulatory agencies on major cases. We know the courts and the regulatory agencies. In fact, more than 90 Venable attorneys have been on the “other side.†We understand how government prosecutors and regulators think. Having been there, we know how to operate successfully in the context of government inquiries and investigations.
INTEGRATED LITIGATION EXPERIENCE
What to expect when you work with Venable.
1. Insight that cuts to the heart of the matter sooner than you’re used to—from a team with the business and legal skills and experience you need to prevail.
2. Creative problem-solving that results in aggressive litigation tactics and trial strategies without ever losing focus on the big picture.
3. Practical problem-solving driven by your business context and what you want to achieve. We’re nimble, capable of navigating the bureaucracies of the largest and most complex companies.
4. Straight talk that helps you navigate the needless complexity of the legal and regulatory processes you face.
5. Unrelenting pressure on the other side, and on the court or agency, to resolve the case in your favor.
6. Efficient work habits and case management that deliver business solutions through litigation.
Skills to handle all types of disputes.
Commercial litigation.
Today’s highly competitive marketplace is increasingly leading corporate management teams to seek legal solutions through the court process. Venable litigators aggressively pursue and promote our clients’ interests in any dispute. Our attorneys represent regional, national and international clients, and regularly try cases through state and federal trial court systems. We assist clients in selecting and implementing the most appropriate and cost-effective form of dispute settlement—whether through court procedures or through various forms of alternative dispute resolution. We work effectively with clients and in-house counsel to devise and implement appropriate case management strategies. Working closely with other attorneys throughout Venable, our litigation attorneys have the resources and experience to handle complex matters across the broad spectrum of legal disciplines.
Class actions.
Venable has deep experience in large class action defense. We have served as lead counsel in class actions brought by private claimants and by government agencies. These cases have involved commercial, employment, product liability and a range of other issues. We have also served as co-counsel in class actions that have required extensive electronic discovery and statistical analysis. Our skill in handling a massive, four-year employment class action underscores our capacity to adeptly manage large cases. In what would have been the largest employment class action ever tried before a jury, Venable successfully defended a food service and facilities management company against claims of a certified class of more than 3,000 managers that alleged race discrimination. The matter was settled two days before jury selection.
Product liability and toxic torts.
With first-hand experience in the major cases of the past 20 years, Venable brings in-depth knowledge and experience to product liability and toxic tort litigation. As lead counsel, we have defeated individual suits and class actions based on a variety of mass tort claims. Both our clients and other law firms turn to us for our understanding of engineering and scientific issues, our knowledge of multiple industries and our ability to work with skilled practitioners to present sophisticated scientific concepts in plain language. Venable has managed local, regional and national litigation for Fortune 500 and other companies across the U.S. Our outstanding track record makes us a logical choice to be lead counsel or a key member of the defense team in any matter that hinges on causation of injury by a product of any type.
Labor and employment.
Our labor and employment attorneys counsel and litigate on behalf of mid-sized and large employers—unionized and non-union, public and private. We deal with every type of workplace issue, including collective bargaining, union avoidance, EEO claims and class actions, merger and acquisition labor cost reductions, wrongful discharge suits, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), wage and overtime disputes, healthcare cost reductions, Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) and trade secrets/non-compete litigation. Venable has a large team of attorneys who focus on helping government employers deal with labor and employment issues, and we are at the forefront in defending employers against class actions.
SEC investigations and white collar defense.
Venable represents corporate executives and companies of all sizes in all phases of civil and criminal investigations by federal and state agencies. We help them respond swiftly, defend their rights, protect their reputations and manage the risk of litigation. We advise parties being investigated for accounting irregularities, securities fraud, insider trading and money laundering and bribery, including proceedings arising from the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). We are experienced in Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) matters, Sarbanes-Oxley compliance and the full range of other current compliance requirements.
REPRESENTATIVE EXPERIENCE
Please visit www.Venable.com/litigationoverview for descriptions of representative experience involving litigation in such areas as class actions, product liability, labor and employment and more.
Venable’s trial lawyers never lose sight of the fact that our job is to help our clients prevail. In case after case, we use our knowledge of law and the courts, meticulous preparation, efficient case management and powerful, persuasive arguments to resolve litigation in our clients’ favor.
Venable LLP
750 E Pratt St #900
Baltimore MD 21202
Tel: 410 244-7400
Fax: 410 244-7742
Votes:20
Comments: 0