Toxic Tort / Hazardous Substances
Segal McCambridge has a national reputation for providing high-quality legal services to clients involved in complex toxic tort and environmental litigation claims. We have the resources necessary to effectively litigate these unique and challenging cases, including an experienced group of lawyers dedicated to this practice area with a strong record of achieving excellent results in all facets of the litigation. We are prepared to vigorously represent clients confronted with high-risk environmental, hazardous substances or toxic tort-based cases, and have litigated cases involving asbestos, silica, talc, mold, mercury, welding rods, radar guns, masks and respirators, chemical exposures, electromagnetic fields and radiation.
The firm's practice is national in scope and encompasses a wide variety of assignments, including national trial counsel, national coordinating counsel, regional counsel, local counsel, MDL counsel and expert development counsel. We have served as lead trial counsel in numerous jurisdictions throughout the country, achieving an extremely high rate of success for our clients. This extensive trial history has allowed the firm to develop extensive experience in jury selection, Daubert motions challenging admissibility of expert testimony and the effective use of technology and demonstrative exhibits in the courtroom.
Mass filings in hazardous substances litigation present unique issues for corporate defendants. The appointment of a national coordinating counsel has become a favored option. Our firm has been selected as national coordinating counsel by numerous corporations and insurers. In that role, the firm organizes the defense, trains local counsel, interviews company personnel, witnesses, prepares standard responses to interrogatories and production requests, develops and presents expert witnesses, negotiates global settlements, serves as lead or assisting trial counsel and establishes case management and reporting guidelines for local counsel.
Toxic tort litigation relies uniquely on experts and the extensive use of medical and scientific literature in preparing and presenting the appropriate theory of the case. Our toxic tort group has developed, deposed, examined and cross-examined experts from a diverse group of disciplines (radiology, pathology, oncology, pulmonology, toxicology, epidemiology, industrial hygiene, material science, etc.), and we have developed and maintained an extraordinary database on frequently used experts. We also have a comprehensive deposition and trial testimony database, a medical and scientific literature library and computerized database and Intranet capability. Experienced, dedicated paralegals manage the libraries, databases and demonstrative exhibit program.
Toxic tort litigation also presents unique procedural issues. The firm has defended numerous clients in state and federal court class action proceedings and cases consolidated by the Judicial Panel of Multi-District Litigation (MDL). We also have been actively involved in constitutional challenges to tort reform statutes, arguing in defense of caps on non-economic and punitive damages, the repeal of joint and several liability and legislative changes affecting the statute of repose. The firm's toxic tort lawyers are active in professional associations on a local and national basis and frequent participants at seminars and speaking forums.
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