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Anand Agneshwar co-chairs the firm's Product Liability Litigation practice group. Anand represents pharmaceutical and consumer product companies as national, strategic, trial, and appellate counsel in product liability litigation and related litigation. His experience includes bench and jury trials, numerous bench hearings, and hundreds of significant arguments in state and federal trial and appellate courts across the country. He is recognized nationwide for his courtroom presence and strategic acumen and was the architect of the personal jurisdiction theory that ultimately prevailed in Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. v. Superior Court of California. He counsels clients on litigation risks, U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulatory issues, and the litigation and compliance impact of potential legislation. Anand writes frequently on product liability and FDA issues. He maintains an active pro bono practice focusing on protecting civil liberties and chairs the firm's Diversity & Inclusion Committee.
Anand graduated from New York University School of Law, magna cum laude, in 1992, where he was elected to the Order of the Coif, Developments Editor of the NYU Law Review, and published a note entitled "Rediscovering God In The Constitution." Following law school, he clerked for the late Honorable Harold A. Ackerman, U.S. District Judge for the District of New Jersey, and the Honorable Morton I. Greenberg, U.S. Circuit Judge for the Third Circuit Court of Appeals.
Co-chair of the Product Liability practice group, Kim Branscome is a nationally renowned trial lawyer and litigation strategist who focuses on complex litigation and trials involving product liability, professional liability, environmental and toxic torts, and securities matters. She has secured several high-profile product liability trial victories on behalf of leading multinational corporations across a broad range of sectors, including the pharmaceutical, consumer products, energy and automotive industries. Kim is widely regarded as one of the most talented and respected lawyers in the product liability and mass tort litigation area, with clients describing her as “one of the leading lawyers in this space” and as “someone clients trust to try their cases.”
EXPERIENCE
Kim has deep experience litigating in federal and state courtrooms across the country, with a particular emphasis on the most high-profile mass torts and product liability matters, as well as high-stakes securities class actions and other complex civil litigation. Kim’s representations include:
AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS
Kim is widely recognized by leading publications and legal directories for her trial accomplishments and expertise. The American Lawyer named Kim to its 2022 list of “West Trailblazers,” which recognizes lawyers in the western states who have moved the needle in the legal industry. Chambers USA has recognized Kim in the Product Liability & Mass Torts (USA) category for the past four years, describing her as a “well-regarded trial lawyer who has amassed a broad range of experience in mass torts and class actions.” The Legal 500 US also recognizes Kim in its Product Liability, Mass Tort and Class Action-Defense categories across consumer products, pharmaceuticals, and medical devices and toxic torts, describing her as a “strong practitioner with excellent strategic smarts.” The Daily Journal recognized her as one of the “Top 100 Lawyers” in California in 2019 and one of the “Top Women Lawyers” in California in 2019, 2020 and 2021. Forbes recognized Kim on its inaugural 2024 “America’s Top 200 Lawyers” list. The Los Angeles Business Journal named Kim to its “Top Litigators & Trial Lawyers” and “Most Influential Women Lawyers” lists in 2019 and Law360 named her a “Rising Star” in 2017.
Brad Brian is a national trial lawyer and Chair of Munger, Tolles & Olson.
A complex civil and criminal litigator, Mr. Brian is a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers and the International Academy of Trial Lawyers. He was recently named to the Los Angeles Business Journal’s 2025 LA500 List of the most influential people in Los Angeles. He is recognized by both Chambers USA and Chambers Global as one of the top trial lawyers in the country, having been ranked in Band 1 in both categories. Chambers USA calls him “heavyweight litigator for the full range of commercial and criminal trials” and highlights client feedback that he is “among the best to handle big-ticket litigation.”
Mr. Brian has served as lead trial and litigation counsel in some of the largest crisis cases in the country over the past 10 years, including: (a) Hawaiian Electric in the Maui wildfire litigation; (b) PG&E in its civil and criminal litigation arising from Northern California wildfires; (c) MGM Resorts in the litigation arising from the 2017 terrorist shooting at the Mandalay Bay Hotel; and (d) the offshore drilling giant Transocean in the criminal and civil litigation arising out of the Deepwater Horizon tragedy. Mr. Brian won significant trial victories for Transocean, PG&E in the criminal case arising from the Zogg fire, Jeffrey Gundlach and DoubleLine Capital in a trial against Trust Company of the West, and Rhonda Byrne (the author of The Secret).
Mr. Brian was recognized in The Best Lawyers in America 2025 edition for Bet-the-Company Litigation; Commercial Litigation; Corporate Compliance Law; Corporate Governance Law; and Criminal Defense: White-Collar, and in 2013 he was named its “Lawyer of the Year” for Bet-the-Company Litigation.
A relentless and principled advocate, Kenneth S. Byrd is a partner in Lieff Cabraser’s Nashville office and an experienced trial attorney who has obtained several large jury verdicts against major tobacco companies. He received the Tennessee Association for Justice’s 2015 Paladin Award for his successful litigation against cigarette manufacturers R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, Philip Morris USA Inc., and Lorillard Tobacco Company in Florida federal courts. The Paladin Award is TAJ’s highest honor and is given to the state’s top trial lawyer of the year. His work in these cases included securing separate jury verdicts of $27 million and $41 million, both upheld on appeal.
Kenny represents clients in mass tort cases, defective product cases, and consumer fraud litigation. He represents consumers in class actions as well as injured individuals and families in personal injury and wrongful death cases nationwide. His leadership roles include appointments to the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee and Early Vetting Subcommittee in In re 3M Combat Arms Earplug Liability Litigation, MDL 2885 (the largest MDL in U.S. history), and to the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee in In re AME Church Employee Retirement Fund Litigation, MDL 3035.
Kenny is also a member of Lieff Cabraser’s Whistleblower/False Claims Act practice group, helping whistleblowers expose fraud and the misuse of government funds.
Consumer protection and defective products.
Boston College Law School, J.D., cum laude (2004)
Samford University, B.S. in Mathematics, minor in Journalism (1995), cum laude
Tennessee (2004)
U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit (2009)
U.S. District Court, District of Colorado (2019)
U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois (2016)
U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Michigan (2020)
U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Tennessee (2006)
U.S. District Court, Middle District of Tennessee (2005)
U.S. District Court, Western District of Tennessee (2007)
Faculty, “Texas Two Step. When Insurance is Gone and the Bankruptcy Court Is Not: Mass Torts in Crisis,” Mississippi Association for Justice Winter CLE Seminar (2022)
Speaker, “Mass Torts/Class Actions and Bankruptcy Issues,” Trial Lawyers of Mass Torts Inaugural Conference (2022)
Co-author, ABA Survey of Federal Circuit Court’s Class Action Decisions (2018)
American Bar Association
American Constitution Society, Nashville Chapter
Camp Ridgecrest Alumni & Friends (Board Member)
Harry Phillips American Inn of Court, Nashville Chapter
Historic Edgefield, Inc. (President, 2009–2011)
Nashville Bar Association
Tennessee Bar Association
Tennessee Trial Lawyers Board of Directors
Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association (Board of Governors)
Best Lawyers in America (Consumer Protection, Personal Injury Litigation–Plaintiffs, Product Liability Litigation–Plaintiffs), 2018–2024
Lawyer of the Year, Product Liability Litigation (Nashville), 2023
Lawdragon 500 Leading Plaintiff Consumer Lawyers in America, 2021–2023
Outstanding Private Practice Antitrust Achievement, American Antitrust Institute, 2020
Media interview, “Full Measure Talks to Kenny Byrd About the ‘Forgotten’ Tobacco War,” 2019
Adjunct Faculty, Vanderbilt Law School, “The Practice of Aggregate Litigation,” 2018–present
Media coverage in Nashville Scene (2015, 2017)
Paladin Award, Tennessee Association for Justice, 2015
Super Lawyers Rising Star for Mid-South, 2014
Sean P. Fahey is a partner and chair of Troutman Pepper Locke’s Health Sciences Department where he leads the group’s litigation, white collar, regulatory, intellectual property, and transactional practices. He has extensive experience serving as national coordinating and trial counsel in complex, multidistrict products liability and health care litigation. He represents several of the largest pharmaceutical, medical device, and life science companies in their high-stakes cases, and also serves as strategic settlement counsel and coordinating counsel in parallel litigation, including DOJ and regulatory investigations, and congressional hearings. He is nationally recognized by clients and peers in Chambers USA, Benchmark Litigation, The Legal 500, LMG Life Sciences, and The Best Lawyers in America.
Brian Fitzpatrick’s research at Vanderbilt focuses on class action litigation, federal courts, judicial selection, and constitutional law. He is best known for his book The Conservative Case for Class Actions (University of Chicago Press, 2019) and for his empirical studies of class action settlements and fee awards. Professor Fitzpatrick joined Vanderbilt's law faculty in 2007 after serving as the John M. Olin Fellow at New York University School of Law. He graduated first in his class from Harvard Law School and went on to clerk for Judge Diarmuid O'Scannlain on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and Justice Antonin Scalia on the U.S. Supreme Court. After his clerkships, Professor Fitzpatrick practiced commercial and appellate litigation for several years at Sidley Austin in Washington, D.C., and served as Special Counsel for Supreme Court Nominations to U.S. Senator John Cornyn. Before earning his law degree, Fitzpatrick graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor's of science in chemical engineering from the University of Notre Dame. He has received the Hall-Hartman Outstanding Professor Award, which recognizes excellence in classroom teaching, for his Civil Procedure and Federal Courts courses.
Education
J.D., Harvard Law School
B.S., University of Notre Dame
Brian Fitzpatrick’s research at Vanderbilt focuses on class action litigation, federal courts, judicial selection, and constitutional law. He is best known for his book The Conservative Case for Class Actions (University of Chicago Press, 2019) and for his empirical studies of class action settlements and fee awards. Professor Fitzpatrick joined Vanderbilt's law faculty in 2007 after serving as the John M. Olin Fellow at New York University School of Law. He graduated first in his class from Harvard Law School and went on to clerk for Judge Diarmuid O'Scannlain on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and Justice Antonin Scalia on the U.S. Supreme Court. After his clerkships, Professor Fitzpatrick practiced commercial and appellate litigation for several years at Sidley Austin in Washington, D.C., and served as Special Counsel for Supreme Court Nominations to U.S. Senator John Cornyn. Before earning his law degree, Fitzpatrick graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor's of science in chemical engineering from the University of Notre Dame. He has received the Hall-Hartman Outstanding Professor Award, which recognizes excellence in classroom teaching, for his Civil Procedure and Federal Courts courses.
Education
J.D., Harvard Law School
B.S., University of Notre Dame
Sean is a founding partner of Olson Grimsley, a plaintiff-side and public interest trial firm that opened its doors in September 2024 with the mission of holding the powerful to account.
Sean has become one of the nation’s leading trial lawyers, having tried four cases to judgment in Olson Grimsley’s first year alone. He was lead counsel in the country’s first trial against a preterm infant formula manufacturer for causing necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) where he and his team secured a $60 million compensatory damages verdict against Mead Johnson, the maker of Enfamil. He co-led the trial in Colorado challenging President Trump’s eligibility to appear on the ballot because he had engaged in insurrection in violation of Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment. He co-led a trial team that won a $20+ million judgment against Johns Manville, a Berkshire Hathaway company, for unlawfully monopolizing the market for calcium silicate pipe insulation. And he co-led a trial team in Cook County, Illinois, against two makers of Zantac—GSK and Boehringer Ingelheim—for causing his client’s prostate cancer, ultimately settling on confidential terms with GSK and trying the case against Boehringer Ingelheim to a hung jury. It was the first trial against a Zantac manufacturer that did not end in a defense verdict. Sean is currently set to try the first multi-plaintiff NEC case in Cook County later this year.
Sean brings an unparalleled breadth of legal experience to the firm. He spent 17 years as a trial lawyer and partner at Bartlit Beck where he tried multiple cases on the plaintiff and defense side to verdict or successful resolution. He has been an Assistant Federal Public Defender in Washington, D.C., Deputy Chief Counsel to President Obama’s Commission investigating the BP oil spill, Special Assistant Attorney General for the State of Colorado in its pattern and practice investigation of the Aurora Police and Fire Departments, and most recently General Counsel for two years at Ibotta, a billion-dollar tech startup in Denver. He clerked for Justice Sandra Day O’Connor on the U.S. Supreme Court and Judge Harry T. Edwards on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
Bethany Kristovich is a litigation partner in the Los Angeles office of Munger, Tolles & Olson.
Ms. Kristovich’s practice is focused on complex civil litigation, with a particular emphasis in high-stakes trials and appeals, including in the professional responsibility, consumer protection, product defect and mass tort contexts. She has represented some of the nation’s largest companies, law firms, and private equity firms in their most sensitive matters. She has also counseled clients through appeals of adverse judgments, including arguments at the California Court of Appeal. Ms. Kristovich is co-chair of the firm’s class action practice group and professional liability defense group.
Ms. Kristovich’s representations include JUUL, Philip Morris USA, MGM Resorts International, and Occidental Petroleum.
Ms. Kristovich brings a trial-lawyer’s sense to developing a case strategy with an eye toward achieving the client’s goal. Since joining Munger Tolles, Ms. Kristovich has had a counsel-table role at numerous high-stakes trials and arbitrations, two of which were class action trials in which the plaintiffs requested over a billion dollars in damages. She has also been called upon to defend against numerous applications for preliminary injunction. Ms. Kristovich has earned broad recognition for her legal victories. As a client has noted, “[s]he is a tremendous litigator, and she catches us off guard when she is being practical but aggressive in a very approachable way.”
In 2024, she was recognized as one of the Women of Influence: Attorneys by the Los Angeles Business Journal, and Lawdragon again recognized Ms. Kristovich in its 500 Leading Litigators in America list for complex civil litigation, especially class action (2022-2025). She is ranked in the Chambers 2024 USA Guide in General Commercial Litigation and has received several accolades from the Daily Journal including Leading Commercial Litigator (2024); the Top 100 Lawyers in California for her work involving bet-the-company litigation, professional liability defense, and some of the largest mass tort cases of the last five years (2023); and Top Women Lawyers list (2024) for the fifth consecutive year.
In 2020, she was a Women in Law – USA honoree by Lawyer Monthly Legal. Ms. Kristovich was also named one of California’s Top 20 Lawyers Under 40 by the Daily Journal and selected as a “Rising Star” by Super Lawyers. She was also part of the legal team that helped the firm win Law360’s Class Action Practice Group of the Year award for her work as part of a trial team for Philip Morris USA.
Ms. Kristovich is an active member of the community. She is a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation and a board member of the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (LAFLA) and the Friends of the LA County Law Library. She was appointed by the Board of Trustees of the State Bar of California to serve as a member of the 2019 Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation. Ms. Kristovich is a member of the professional development committee of the American Bar Association Section of Litigation. She serves on the board of the California Women’s Law Center, and she is a previous member of the advisory board of the Western Center on Law and Poverty. As a former debater, she volunteers for the Los Angeles Metropolitan Debate League, an organization that encourages high school students in urban schools to participate in debate.
Before joining the firm, Ms. Kristovich served as law clerk to the Honorable Edward Rafeedie in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.
The chair of Lieff Cabraser’s Economic Injury Product Defect Practice Group, partner Jason L. Lichtman has extensive experience leading multidistrict and large class action litigation on behalf of consumer plaintiffs. With a practice focused on consumer protection, data privacy, and damages, Jason recently recovered more than $122 million in economic value for coffee farmers in the Kona region who sued nearly two dozen companies for selling “Kona coffee” that was not coffee from Kona. The Court described Jason as conducting one “of the most impressive class action cases I have dealt with in my time on the federal bench,” adding that his results in the litigation were “great for justice” because this was a case with “a real result that makes people whole again.”
Numerous other courts have also appointed Jason to leadership positions in large consumer protection cases, in which he has recovered more than $500 million for his clients, including the exploding Samsung Top-Loading Washing Machines case (Co-Lead Counsel); the Whirlpool Corp. Front-Loading Washer products liability litigation (Co-Lead Counsel); and the Dover v. British Airways airline overcharging case (Class Counsel). In the Whirlpool Defective Washers Products Liability litigation, Jason served as Co-Chair of the Law and Motion Committee, one of the trial counsel, and Lead Settlement Counsel, achieving a nationwide settlement strongly favorable to plaintiffs following a bellwether trial, multiple appeals to the Sixth and Seventh Circuits (all won by plaintiffs), and multiple petitions for certiorari (all defeated by plaintiffs). Jason has also secured major victories as counsel of record before numerous federal appellate courts.
Jason’s practice also includes a focus on complex damages issues, including in the Anthem Data Breach Litigation and Marriott Data Breach litigation, leading plaintiffs’ work with damages experts, including the development of highly technical, comprehensive experts reports, defending depositions of plaintiffs’ experts, and taking defendants’ experts’ depositions. The Marriott case remains pending, but Jason’s work contributed heavily to the groundbreaking settlement for plaintiffs of $115 million in Anthem, as well as significant injunctive relief targeting deficient Anthem’s cybersecurity practices. Jason also serves on the board of directors for Public Justice Foundation and is past Chair of the Public Justice Class Action Committee. Public Justice is devoted to standing up for consumers against unscrupulous payday lenders, reckless polluters, dangerous food producers, and other bad corporate actors. A multiple-year “Super Lawyer” for the New York area, he also served on the Law360 Privacy and Consumer Protection Editorial Advisory Board, providing feedback on Law360’s news coverage, including case updates, policy developments, and trends in various industries.
Derek is a senior partner in Keller Rohrback’s nationally recognized Complex Litigation Group and a member of the firm’s Executive Committee.
Derek's passion for holding large corporations accountable for wrongdoing has helped recover billions of dollars for consumers, retirees, governments and institutions. He has served in leadership roles in multidistrict litigation and major complex cases across the country.
Currently, Derek is co-lead counsel in In re Facebook, Inc. Consumer Privacy User Profile Litigation, the MDL against Facebook stemming from the Facebook Cambridge Analytica scandal. In the case, after years of hard-fought litigation, he and the team achieved a historic $725 million settlement, the largest amount paid to date to resolve a privacy-based class action. Derek was recently appointed co-lead counsel in In Re: TikTok, Inc, Minor Privacy Litigation, the MDL in which Plaintiffs allege that TikTok unlawfully collects and uses the personal information of children under 13.
In addition to his class action work, Derek helps manage the Keller Rohrback team representing state and local government entities in a number of matters involving significant public health crises. For example, Derek leads the Keller Rohrback team litigating government cases against opioid manufacturers and distributors in The National Prescription Opioid Litigation. In the Opioid MDL, Derek serves on the Expert and Law & Briefing Committees and lead the litigation against a major opioid manufacturer. He also represents school districts and counties in litigation against the e-cigarette company, JUUL, for targeting and addicting youth. These cases are quintessential examples of the type of litigation Derek and the Keller Rohrback team fervently pursue: corporate fraud and malfeasance causing serious harm to the public.
Derek’s other notable cases include the Wells Fargo unauthorized account consumer class action for which Derek served as lead counsel. In the Wells Fargo case, Derek and the Keller Rohrback team achieved a $142 million settlement requiring the bank to refund all improper fees and provide first-of-its kind credit damage reimbursement, among other relief, to Wells Fargo customers; multi-billion dollar mortgage-backed securities cases on behalf of the Federal Home Loan Banks of Chicago, Indianapolis and Boston; ERISA class cases on behalf of employees whose retirement savings were decimated by corporate fraud and abuse on the part of Enron, WorldCom, Countrywide, and Washington Mutual, among others. He has also litigated fraud, RICO, and antitrust cases against drug manufacturers, pharmacy benefit managers, and insurance companies for conspiring to drive up the cost of life-saving medications such as insulin.
Many of Derek’s cases have required coordinating with state and federal agencies involved in litigation that parallels cases pursued by Keller Rohrback, including state attorneys general, the Department of Justice, and the Department of Labor. In addition, Derek has extensive experience negotiating complex, multi-party settlements, and coordinating with the many parties and counsel necessary to accomplish this. He is frequently asked to speak at national conferences about class actions, public health litigation, ERISA, and other complex litigation topics.
Derek has been included on the Super Lawyers® "Top 100: Washington Super Lawyers" list from 2022 through 2025 and he was recognized by Law360 as a "Titan of the Plaintiffs Bar" in 2024, along with a variety of other prestigious recognitions.
Before joining Keller Rohrback, Derek served as a law clerk for the Honorable Michael R. Hogan, U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon. He was also a trial attorney in the Employment Litigation Section of the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. where he prosecuted discrimination cases on behalf of the United States.
Building upon his experience in complex asbestos cases, the historic tobacco lawsuits, and the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks litigation, Don Migliori is a multifaceted litigator who can navigate both the courtroom and the negotiating table. He represents victims of defective medical devices and drugs, occupational diseases, terrorism, aviation disasters, antitrust, and securities and consumer fraud in mass torts and other cutting-edge litigation that spans the country.
Don serves in leadership roles for a number of multidistrict litigations, including being a key member of Motley Rice’s team that represents dozens of cities, towns, counties and townships in the National Prescription Opiate MDL against opioid manufacturers and distributors. He also represents states in similarly filed litigation. He played a significant role in negotiations on behalf of tens of thousands of women allegedly harmed by pelvic mesh/sling products and served as co-liaison counsel in the N.J. Bard pelvic mesh litigation in Atlantic County. Hundreds of cases have been filed in federal and state courts against multiple defendants.
He is also co-lead counsel for In re Ethicon Physiomesh Flexible Composite Hernia Mesh Products Liability Litigation, a member of the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee for In re Bard IVC Filters Products Liability Litigation, as well as the Depuy® Orthopaedics, Inc. ASR™ and Pinnacle® Hip Implant MDLs. Don has litigated against both Ethicon, a Johnson & Johnson subsidiary, and C.R. Bard previously in pelvic mesh litigation and also against C.R. Bard in the Composix® Kugel® hernia mesh multidistrict litigation, In re Kugel Mesh Hernia Patch Products Liability Litigation, the first MDL before the federal court of Rhode Island. Don also serves as co-lead plaintiffs’ counsel and liaison counsel in the federal MDL, and as liaison counsel for the Composix® Kugel® Mesh lawsuits consolidated in Rhode Island state court on behalf of thousands of individuals alleging injury by the hernia repair patch.
As liaison counsel for all wrongful death and personal injury cases in the September 11th aviation security litigation, Don played a central role in the extensive discovery, mediations and settlements of more than 50 cases of aviation liability and damages against numerous defendants. He also represented families of the victims who opted out of the Victim Compensation Fund to seek greater answers, accountability and recourse. Additionally, he manages associated litigation as a lead attorney for In re Terrorist Attacks on September 11, 2001, MDL #1570, a groundbreaking case designed to bankrupt the financiers of al Qaeda.
Don contributed his experience in connection with the commencement of and strategy for shareholder derivative litigation brought on behalf Chiquita Brands International, Inc., alleging the defendants breached their fiduciary duties by paying bribes to terrorist organizations in violation of U.S. and Columbian law. He also served as trial counsel for PACE Industry Union-Management Pension Fund in a securities case against Forest Laboratories, Inc., and was involved in the initial liability discovery and trial strategy in an ongoing securities fraud class action involving Household International, Inc.
Don began working with Motley Rice attorneys in 1997 on behalf of the State Attorneys General in the historic lawsuit against Big Tobacco, resulting in the largest civil settlement in U.S. history. He tried several noteworthy asbestos cases on behalf of mesothelioma victims, including the state of Indiana’s first contractor liability verdict and first premises liability verdict for wrongful exposure to asbestos. He continues to manage asbestos cases and actively litigates mesothelioma lawsuits and individual tobacco cases in the courtroom.
Don is a frequent speaker at legal seminars across the country and has appeared on numerous television and radio programs, as well as in print media to address legal issues related to terrorist financing, aviation security, class action litigation, premises liability and defective medical devices. A "Distinguished Practitioner in Residence" at Roger Williams University School of Law for the 2010- 2011 academic year, Don taught mass torts as an adjunct professor for more than 10 years. Don is an AV® rated attorney by Martindale-Hubbell®.
Jim's practice focuses on the defense of pharmaceutical, medical device and consumer product litigation in state and federal courts nationwide, particularly consolidated mass torts and multi-district litigations.
In Chambers, clients describe Jim as having "[a]n incredible ability to synthesize complex scientific issues into very persuasive arguments that can be used both in court and in negotiations with the other side."
He serves as national coordinating counsel and MDL counsel for consolidated litigations across the U.S. involving thousands of plaintiffs as well as in numerous single-plaintiff cases involving pharmaceuticals, consumer products and medical devices. In conjunction with those roles, Jim emphasizes efficient discovery and manages significant mass tort e-discovery undertakings for his clients.
Jim has also coordinated the resolution of some of the largest, mass torts of the last decade.
Jim also counsels clients on product liability due diligence related to potential acquisitions and divestitures.
Regarding pharmaceutical and biologic manufacturers, Jim's experience includes:
Regarding medical device and consumer products manufacturers, Jim's experience includes:
Eric is a first-chair trial attorney who has dedicated his entire career to helping clients in the pharmaceutical, medical device, and health care sectors manage risk. His trial to verdict experience in courts throughout the U.S. make him a go-to litigator for his clients' most difficult cases.
Eric defends clients in litigation involving mass tort, personal injury, and wrongful death claims. As a sought-after trial attorney for one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world, he has trial-to-verdict experience in federal and state courts throughout the U.S. Eric has significant experience with multidistrict litigation (MDL), has served as lead counsel in “virtual firms” for large mass torts, and also defends clients against single-plaintiff claims.
Equally comfortable with science and the law, Eric is recognized for his ability to effectively communicate his clients’ products and technologies to diverse audiences. His experience spans a diverse range of products and therapeutic applications, from hip replacement devices to cosmetic injectables.
Eric is also passionate about serving his community. He and his wife have served as certified foster parents to multiple children and he has held various leadership roles at his church. Eric has also coached several youth sports teams.
David Stellings represents consumers and small businesses from around the world in complex litigation in federal and state courts.
For the last 25+ years, Mr. Stellings has focused on product liability, consumer fraud, financial fraud, and breach of contract cases. His clients and class members have received more than
$17.5 billion as a result of his advocacy. Several of Mr. Stellings’ recent cases are described below.
Mr. Stellings is Court-appointed co-lead counsel in a large multidistrict class action litigation pending in federal court in Los Angeles. Plaintiffs allege certain auto part makers and automobile manufacturers – including ZF-TRW, Hyundai-Kia, Mitsubishi, Toyota, Honda, and Fiat Chrysler – caused consumers to buy and overpay for millions of cars that have defective airbag and seat belt systems. These defective safety systems have led to a number of deaths and serious injuries. In 2023 Plaintiffs and Toyota entered into a settlement valued at more than
$148 million, pending final approval of the Court. The litigation against the other defendants continues.
Mr. Stellings is Court-appointed co-lead counsel in another defective-airbag-related multidistrict class action litigation pending in federal court in Atlanta. Plaintiffs allege airbag manufacturer ARC, along with several other part suppliers and automakers, manufactured and sold more than 50 million vehicles with defective airbags that sometimes explode in a crash, and
send razor-sharp pieces of steel shrapnel into the faces, necks and bodies of drivers and passengers.
Mr. Stellings is co-lead counsel in a class action in federal court in Miami against truck manufacturer Hino. Plaintiffs allege Hino engaged in various types of emission cheating, and that as a result Hino purchasers paid too much for their trucks. The parties agreed to settle the case for $237.5 million plus valuable extended and additional warranties. The settlement is subject to Court approval.
Mr. Stellings is co-lead counsel in a case in federal court in Northern California against General Motors, in which plaintiffs allege the airbags in millions of GM trucks are calibrated improperly to fail to deploy in certain types of moderate and severe crashes, which can lead to serious injuries and/or death.
Mr. Stellings is a member of the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee in a multidistrict litigation pending in federal court in Pittsburgh against Philips Respironics and its parent companies. Plaintiffs allege defendants manufactured and sold more than 10 million defective CPAP machines, which caused economic damage and physical injuries to the people who bought and used the machines.
Mr. Stellings is part of the leadership team in the historic Volkswagen “Clean Diesel” multidistrict litigation, in which plaintiffs alleged that Volkswagen intentionally and systematically cheated
its customers, lied to the government, and misled the public about the emissions of its diesel engine vehicles sold under the Volkswagen, Audi, and Porsche brands. The Court approved a settlement relating to 2.0-Liter engines worth approximately $10 billion in cash, as well as a
3.0-Liter engine settlement with an estimated value between $1.2 and $4 billion. The Court also approved a separate $327.5 million settlement with Bosch for designing the “defeat device” software in the affected VW vehicle engines. Class members in these cases recovered 100% of their alleged economic damages.
Mr. Stellings is a member of the leadership team in the Takata exploding airbag multidistrict litigation. Plaintiffs in that case allege that more than 40 million class members were damaged when airbag manufacturer Takata and several major automobile manufacturers knowingly exposed them to the risk of being killed or injured by shrapnel from exploding airbags. Certain automaker defendants in the case have settled for a total of more than $1.5 billion, and the litigation continues against the remaining defendants.
Mr. Stellings was on the leadership team in a case against various automakers who allegedly cheated fuel economy tests for certain gasoline-powered vehicles, and as a result, represented to regulators and consumers that the vehicles obtained better fuel economy than they actually did. The litigation and intensive settlement negotiations resulted in a non-reversionary $96.5 million settlement that provides class members “full compensation”—i.e., 100¢ on the dollar— for their alleged losses.
Mr. Stellings led a similar class action against Porsche for fuel economy cheating. The case settled for more than $80 million, close to 100% of the economic damages class members experienced.
Mr. Stellings was part of the leadership team in the Fiat Chrysler “EcoDiesel” multidistrict litigation, in which plaintiffs alleged that Fiat Chrysler and Bosch designed and installed cheating emissions software in more than 100,000 vehicles. The Court approved a settlement that required Fiat Chrysler to fix the vehicles, and provided class members $307.5 million in cash plus a valuable extended warranty.
Product Liability, Consumer Protection, Financial Fraud, Breach of Contract
New York University School of Law, New York, New York
J.D. - 1993
Law Journal: Journal of International Law and Politics, Editor
Cornell University, Ithaca, New York
B.A. (cum laude) - 1990
New York, Appellate Division, 1st Department, 1994
U.S. Court of Appeals, 1st Circuit, 2004
U.S. Court of Appeals, 2nd Circuit, 2010
U.S. Court Of Appeals, 4th Circuit, 2013
U.S. Court of Appeals, 5th Circuit, 2009
U.S. Court of Appeals, 9th Circuit, 2017
U.S. Court of Appeals, 11th Circuit, 2007 Michigan Eastern District Court, 2015
U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York, 2012
U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, 1996
U.S. District Court, Northern District of New York, 2022
Speaker, ABA National Class Action Institute, 2023
Speaker, Miami Law Class Action & Complex Litigation Forum, 2023
Speaker, “Trends in Class Action Litigation,” Trial Lawyers of Mass Torts Inaugural Conference, December 2022
Speaker, “MDL—Who Wants One? Plaintiff, Defense and Judicial Perspectives on MDL Pros and Cons,” University of Miami School of Law 2020 Class Action & Complex Litigation Forum, January, 2020
American Bar Association
Bar Association of the City of New York New Jersey State Bar Association
New York State Bar Association
“Super Lawyer for New York Metro,” Super Lawyers, 2012 - 2023
“Lawdragon 500 Leading Plaintiff Consumer Lawyers in America,” Lawdragon, 2023 “Lawdragon 500 Leading Plaintiff Financial Lawyers in America,” Lawdragon, 2021-2023 “Consumer Attorney of the Year Finalist,” Consumer Attorneys of California, 2017
“Trial Lawyer of the Year Finalist,” Public Justice, 2012 “Lawdragon Finalist,” Lawdragon, 2009