The Asbestos Over-Naming and Trust Transparency Problem: A Philadelphia Case Study
23 minute read | March.26.2024
Mass Torts & Product Liability
Our approach to high-stakes mass torts and product liability work can be summed up in one word: relentless.
As the General Counsel of a Fortune 250 company said of our group: “Orrick is the firm to go to when you simply have to win.” We never stop working for the right result.
Leaders in their industries, including Johnson & Johnson and Marathon Oil, turn to us for help navigating the litigation and reputational minefields these battles present. Our formidable team has extensive experience defending matters involving exposure, toxic poisoning, drugs and disasters.
From fossil fuels to crop protection to student-athlete concussion litigation, our lawyers have an unparalleled record of success defending companies in mass torts involving thousands of plaintiffs nationwide, and in front of judges and juries in some of the most plaintiff-friendly jurisdictions in the country. In addition, it’s our stand-out cross-border capacity that has international clients, like Chinese National Building Material Group, turning to Orrick for guidance through the U.S. tort law system
Selected as National Coordinating and Trial Counsel for many of our clients, we identify and analyze case trends and overarching legal developments to implement a consistent, multijurisdictional, resolution strategy that keeps up with both ever-changing science, legal landscape, judicial attitudes and jury pool. Through creative staffing, sophisticated use of data analytics, and effective case management we bring exceptional quality and efficiency to all our matters.
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Marathon Oil Company as national coordinating counsel in claims by both government and private entities relating to climate change as a result of the production and sale of fossil fuel products. These cases, which assert a variety of claims under private and public nuisance theories as well as products liability doctrines, are pending in a variety of courts across the country.
Major technology company against claims that its purchase of lithium ion batteries subjected it to allegations of violating forced labor statutes in sub-Saharan African mining activities.
Johnson & Johnson in defending more than 15,000 personal injury lawsuits related to use of its talc containing products, including trial counsel products liability cases, major consumer class actions, and cases brought under Proposition 65.
Chinese National Building Material Group, the largest gypsum-board producer in the world, and related entities as lead counsel in the federal MDL litigation regarding allegations of defective drywall manufactured in China. The litigation involves buildings and individuals allegedly harmed as a result of post-Hurricane Katrina construction.
NCAA as national trial counsel for the NCAA in its student-athlete concussion litigation. In this role, we are coordinating and executing strategy, and successfully defending the NCAA in courts across the country.
Union Carbide Corporation (UCC), The Dow Chemical Company’s wholly owned subsidiary, in its asbestos-related litigation. For 17 years we served as national litigation and coordinating counsel on more than 12,000 cases in any given year, with an average of over 2,000 new mesothelioma cases filed annually. In our comprehensive role we identified and analyzed case trends and overarching legal developments to implement a consistent, multijurisdictional and trial-focused strategy that kept up with both evolving science and an ever-changing jury population.
Major Agriscience Company as trial counsel in product liability cases pending in California in connection with alleged injuries from exposure to the client’s pesticide product.
