Toxic Tort

Our toxic tort lawyers’ capabilities encompass broad-based experience and resources in the defense and management of complex toxic-tort and mass-tort litigation for clients that include manufacturers and distributors of products in a wide range of industries including:

• Petroleum and Petrochemicals
• Paints, Coatings and Other Chemicals
• Electrical Products
• Aerospace Products
• Telecommunications Products
• Automotive Products
• Construction Products
• Consumer Products 

For more than two decades, our toxic tort attorneys have defended clients in claims involving exposures to asbestos, benzene, vinyl chloride, silica, mold, chemicals, heavy metals, lead paint and other substances.  The attorneys in our group approach the defense of the Firm’s clients with an emphasis on creativity, efficiency, and thoroughness in legal analysis and litigation strategy. 

Our seasoned toxic tort lawyers defend cases for our clients in a number of jurisdictions, including New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Delaware.  Our attorneys have extensive experience in litigating the complex legal issues and defenses presented in toxic-tort cases and routinely work with experts in the fields of medicine, industrial hygiene, epidemiology, and toxicology in defending our clients.

Successful representation is also based on our toxic tort attorneys’ knowledge of and familiarity with the local practices, procedures, and members of the judiciary, as well as our working relationships with other practitioners on both sides of the litigation, in the jurisdictions in which we practice.

Efficient use of our internal resources – including our extensive brief banks, medical and scientific libraries, and databases – enable us to comprehensively track and manage every client and every case. This results in cost-effective representation for companies confronting the financial challenges and pressures presented by multi-party, multi-state tort litigation.

Representative Cases

• Represented Allen-Bradley and Cutler-Hammer, which allegedly manufactured asbestos-containing electrical equipment used on Long Island Railroad trains.  Successfully moved for summary judgment on behalf of Allen-Bradley based on federal preemption.
• Served as co-lead counsel with national counsel for Burnham LLC in a trial that resulted in a $20 million verdict against Burnham; later remitted to $6 million. The case settled for a fraction of the remitted amount. 
• Obtained the lowest mesothelioma verdict in New York in several years on behalf of Eaton Corporation.  Our client paid nothing due to settlements exceeding the amount of the verdict.
• Represented Lucent Technologies, Inc. and achieved a favorable settlement following two weeks of trial due to the successful cross-examination of Plaintiffs’ liability and medical experts.
• Represented the Eaton Corporation and achieved a favorable settlement following cross-examination of Plaintiff that raised significant issues regarding his credibility.
• Successfully obtained a defense verdict in favor of ExxonMobil in an asbestos-related premises liability case brought on behalf of deceased Plaintiff who was a career insulator.