Shook Noted as Most Active Product Liability Defense Firm for Last Five Years

In the article “Product Liability Case Filings in U.S. Federal Courts Reach Eight-Year High,” The Global Legal Post recognized Shook as “the most active defendants’ firm for product liability cases between 2015 and 2019, working on 27,240 cases,” based on a report from Lex Machina. The article, which comments on a years-long uptick in product liability cases filed, mentions that the numbers are even higher when counting cases stripped out of multi-district litigation (MDL) filings.  

Speaking at a Lex Machina webinar, Shook Partner Alicia Donahue was quoted on her perspective, “Why I think we’re seeing an uptick in non-MDL cases is because federal courts are getting better and better at complex litigation such that in many cases an MDL isn’t required anymore, even when there is a significant volume of cases.”

Law360 also reported on the findings from Lex Machina. Donahue told Law360 in an article “4 Takeaways from the Product Liability Litigation Report,” advertising to plaintiffs also plays a role in the rise of cases.

“We’ve seen an increase in advertising, especially on women’s health products, so I think plaintiffs’ counsel advertising is driving increased filings,” Donahue said. “And then I think we can't disregard the impact of litigation funding on the plaintiffs’ side.”

Donahue, along with Shook Partner Walt Cofer, co-chairs Shook’s Product Liability Litigation Practice Group.