Dupont Circle Fountain, Washington, D.C.

Litigation Highlights

Highlights of my litigation experience include:

  • One year clerkship with Judge John H. Pratt, U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia (1974-75).
  • Over 30 years of general, commercial and aviation litigation in federal (and state) courts at all levels and phases of trials and appellate courts.
  • First chair in four federal jury trials (ranging from one to four weeks in length) and numerous other federal cases.
  • Trial attorney in five multi-district air crash litigations in the U.S. District Courts for the District of Columbia and the Eastern District of Michigan, including as second chair in six jury trials (ranging from two weeks to eighteen months in length).
  • Have taken many hundreds of depositions, the majority of which were medical, scientific, engineering, or economic experts.
  • In 1992-93, litigated to settlement in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California on behalf of Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. vs. McDonnell Douglas Corporation, a multi-million dollar contribution/indemnity lawsuit arising out of the design of the brake system for the DC-10 aircraft.
  • In 1989-91, second chair, including exam and cross-exam of a number of the witnesses, on six attorney/three paralegal trial team in eighteen month air crash liability jury trial before the Chief Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, involving 200 trial days, 48 live witnesses, including 28 expert witnesses and more than 2,500 trial exhibits, of which over 600 were admitted into evidence. Took all but two of depositions of McDonnell Douglas Corp. factual liability and expert witnesses and countless pre-trial motions and briefs. Responsible for design and selection of the computerized litigation system, purchase of hardware and software and computer link between Washington, D.C. and Detroit, and the logistics of trial in Detroit, including arranging for office space, equipment and living quarters and move of hardware, software and files to Detroit.
  • From 1977-86, second chair in air crash multi-district litigation involving (1) liability discovery and pretrial; (2) 13 surviving orphans causation jury trials and more than 20 pre-trials, five separate appeals to the D.C. Circuit and two subsequent global settlements of 150 surviving orphans cases; (3) one liability wrongful death and subsequent global settlement of 76 deceased orphans cases; and (4) one U.S. Supreme Court decision.
  • Other federal court litigation involving patent, trademark and copyright infringement, consumer credit, antitrust, administrative law, Indian rights, securities fraud, RICO, UCC, corporate, contractual and injunctive relief issues.