Arnold & Porter

Primarily driven from its East Coast offices but comfortable handling cases throughout the US, Arnold & Porter has a national product liability practice, which has secured favorable results for clients when defending personal injury, property and economic damage claims arising from alleged defective products. Smoking-related cases remain a mainstay of the practice, and following on from the firm’s historical work for Philip Morris on tobacco cases, a team, led by Daphne O’Connor and John Massaro, is acting as national counsel for Altria in the defense of private actions (consolidated in several MDLs) and Attorney General lawsuits alleging damage caused by vaping products manufactured by Juul Labs. The team’s litigation capabilities have also recently been enhanced by the arrival of a six-strong litigation group, including experienced trial and appellate lawyer Frank Cruz-Alvarez from Shook, Hardy & Bacon LLP, who all have strong product liability expertise. Clients also benefit from deep risk management and pre-litigation prowess, with Eric Rubel noted for his experience helping companies assess their compliance with Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) regulations, as well as handling subsequent product recalls and defending CPSC penalty investigations. Other recommended practitioners include Michelle Gillice, who also excels in CPSC-related work; New York-based Lori Leskin, who is adept at devising effective strategies for manufacturers of consumer products in complex litigation; and New York-based Anand Agneshwar, who co-heads the overarching product liability litigation group alongside O’Connor. All named practitioners are based in Washington DC, unless otherwise indicated.