DRI Faculty List
2021 Talc Litigation Virtual Seminar
May 13 - 14, 2021
Keith Ameele Managing Partner
Foley & Mansfield PLLP
Keith Ameele is the managing partner of Foley & Mansfield's Los Angeles and Walnut Creek offices and a member of the firm's executive committee. He concentrates his practice entirely on litigation, with an emphasis on product liability, toxic tort, mass tort, general negligence, and business litigation. Keith serves primarily as national coordinating counsel for manufacturers, distributors, suppliers, and premises owners in high-risk toxic tort, products liability, and complex business litigation matters. |
Amanda Burns Cardno ChemRisk
Amanda Burns is a board-certified toxicologist with over ten years of consulting and project management experience. Her principal areas of training and expertise include toxicology, occupational and environmental exposure assessment, dose reconstruction, and human health risk assessment. Her consulting and project experience includes conducting quantitative exposure and dose assessments as well as assessing risk to communities, consumers, and workers from chemicals such as benzene, asbestos, pesticides, and metals. |
Joseph D. Cohen Partner
Porter Hedges LLP
Joseph D. Cohen is a partner in the Houston office of Porter Hedges. His practice focuses on handling catastrophic injury and wrongful death cases arising from allegations of products liability, including pharmaceuticals. He also provides individual representation to current and former employees of pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers in both civil and criminal contexts. Joe has been a member of the DRI Board of Directors and is on the Drug and Medical Device Steering Committee. Joe is the Law Institute liaison for the 2021 Talc Litigation Virtual Seminar. |
Eric D. Cook Willcox & Savage PC
Eric D. Cook of Willcox Savage, P.C., in Norfolk, Virginia is an expert in medical and state-of-the-art issues associated with asbestos and talc litigation. He routinely handles expert development, depositions, and trial examination issues (including Daubert/Frye). He has been assigned as trial counsel throughout the country and won multiple defense verdicts in mesothelioma cases, and several successful appeals. |
Evelyn Fletcher Davis Partner
Hawkins Parnell & Young LLP
Evelyn Fletcher Davis has worked aggressively to change the litigation and legislative landscape in favor of asbestos and talc defendants. For over 22 years, Evelyn has litigated, led, and managed toxic tort and product liability cases across the United States. She is the current national coordinating counsel to four companies and has represented over 70 clients as local counsel in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and New York. Evelyn frequently speaks and publishes about developing trends, strategies, and issues critical to asbestos and talc defense. She has been Chair of the DRI Talc Litigation Seminar since its inaugural event in 2019 and she is also President-Elect of the Association of Defense Trial Attorneys. |
Susan B. Fillichio Senior Vice President
DecisionQuest
Susan B. Fillichio, a trial consultant and expert litigation strategist, has for 32 years in the legal industry, and 17 as a consultant, provided insight to many of the country's most accomplished trial lawyers and Fortune 500 companies. She has supported counsel in hundreds of cases alleging exposure to asbestos and has been a pioneer consulting in talc litigation. Ms. Fillichio specializes in behavioral research, which serves to ground her recommendations, targeted toward simplifying messages and identifying the most compelling strategy. |
Rick R. Fuentes, PhD Managing Partner
R& D Strategic Solutions LLC
Rick R. Fuentes, PhD is a founding partner of R&D Strategic Solutions, LLC. He has specialized in jury behavior and decision-making and the evaluation of complex evidence for over 30 years. Dr. Fuentes has a Master's Degree in Counseling Psychology from the University of Georgia, and a Master's Degree and Ph.D. in Applied Psychology from Texas A&M University. He has worked with trial teams on hundreds of civil and criminal cases involving issues of tort, contracts, anti-trust, intellectual property, product liability, and professional malpractice. |
Ira Goldberg
Ira Goldberg is Of Counsel at the Los Angeles and Emeryville, California law firm Woolls Peer Dollinger & Scher. Ira represents retailers in talc litigation defense as well as in obtaining performance of defense and indemnity obligations. He has represented clients nationally in state and federal courts, resolving duty to defend disputes, including complex multi-party actions in talc, environmental, construction defect, directors and officers, personal injury and property damage cases. Ira has a reputation as a creative problem-solver, often executing novel strategies. |
Mr. Edaward Hugo Hugo Parker LLP
Mr. Edaward Hugo earned his J.D. degree from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law in 1986. He is: a Certified Civil Trial Specialist, accredited by the State Bar of California; a "Board Certified Civil Trial Advocate", National Board of Trial Advocacy; a "Board Certified Civil Pretrial Practice Advocate", National Board of Trial Advocacy; Charter Fellow, Litigation Counsel of America; Charter Member, Institute of Trial Presentation; Member, Rue Ratings' Best Attorneys of America; Member, The American College of Board Certified Attorneys; " Super Lawyer" Northern California, 16 consecutive years; Member, National Association of Distinguished Counsel, Nations Top One Percent; and "AV" Martindale-Hubbell rated. He is admitted to the California, Colorado, Hawaii, Oregon and Washington bars. |
Mr. A. Michael Ierardi, MES, MS Cardno ChemRisk
Mr. A. Michael Ierardi, MES, MS is a Senior Health Scientist with Cardno ChemRisk in the Brooklyn office. His principal areas of interest and training include industrial hygiene and safety, exposure science, toxicology, human health risk assessment, and environmental health. At Cardno ChemRisk, Mr. Ierardi provides on-site industrial hygiene support and sampling; conducts numerous exposure assessments and dose reconstructions for a variety of chemicals in a diverse array of occupational settings; and routinely assists clients with risk management and risk communication strategies. |
Dr. Brent Kerger Exponent Inc
Dr. Brent Kerger is a Principal Scientist in Exponent's Health Sciences Center for Toxicology and Mechanistic Biology. A board-certified toxicologist, Dr. Kerger specializes in the study of environmental chemical fate and transport, exposure assessment, pharmacokinetics, and adverse human health effects. He has over 36 years of experience conducting and managing laboratory, field, and clinical studies of exposure, toxicology, epidemiology, and disease causation analysis. He provides scientific and strategic consultation regarding regulatory and litigation matters including 27 years of environmental chemistry and toxicology expert witness experience. He has in-depth expertise regarding asbestos, talc, dioxins and furans, PCBs, PAHs, chlorinated solvents, benzene and petroleum products, irritant gases, pesticides, flavoring chemicals, and heavy metals. A board-certified toxicologist since 1994, Dr. Kerger has extensive experience in evaluating scientific issues involving claims of chemical causation or increased risk of diseases in humans in regulatory and litigation settings. He has thoroughly researched key toxicological issues surrounding human exposures to a broad range of chemicals and mineral dusts. Dr. Kerger guides the optimized research capabilities and access to resources (expertise and information) that promote an integrated, multi-disciplinary perspective to addressing scientific issues. He has designed and implemented a variety of field studies, laboratory studies, and clinical studies aimed at characterizing chemical exposure and toxicity. He has published numerous articles in peer-reviewed journals on chemical toxicity, physiologically-based pharmacokinetic modeling, Monte Carlo uncertainty analysis, evidence-based analysis, and innovative exposure and risk assessment techniques. |
Christopher S. Kozak Landman Corsi Ballaine
Christopher S. Kozak has been a Trial Lawyer for more than 20 years, defending railroads, and a variety of premises owners, contractors, product manufacturers, and suppliers. Since cosmetic talc products started being the focus of Trials in 2014, Christopher has been heavily involved in the defense of these cases. Christopher has earned a reputation among his clients and colleagues for being thorough, well-prepared and driven to dispose of cases before Trial – and, if that does not work, aggressively defending his clients at Trial. In fact, he has tried cases to verdict in some of the most difficult jurisdictions in the Country, including 2 talc cases tried to verdict in NYCAL. Christopher also is well known for his efficiency and desire to quickly move matters forward. He primarily practices in federal and state courts located in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Connecticut. |
Dr. Anne Loccisano Exponent
Dr. Anne Loccisano is a Managing Scientist in Exponent's Health Sciences Center for Toxicology and Mechanistic Biology. She is a board-certified toxicologist with 10 years of experience in toxicological and human health risk assessment; exposure assessment; development of physiologically-based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) models; and interpretation and analysis of safety, risk, exposure, and epidemiologic information in order to support litigation and perform risk assessments. She has expertise regarding perfluorinated compounds, pesticides, metals, VOCs, gases, ethanol and other recreational drugs, and consumer products. She has experience working on diverse project teams, has published several peer-reviewed papers and book chapters, participates as an expert reviewer, presents at national and international meetings, and is an active member of several professional societies. |
Erika L. Muse Foley & Mansfield PLLP
Erika L. Muse is a partner in the New York office of Foley & Mansfield, where she focuses her practice in toxic/mass tort, product liability and environmental litigation. As a member of the firm's NYCAL defense team, Erika represents product and equipment manufacturers, distributors, and premises owners entangled in complex asbestos litigation. Directly participating in every phase of litigation, Erika's experience includes legal research, drafting substantive and procedural motions, an extensive discovery and deposition practice, and trial preparation. She is adept in managing the daily litigation responsibilities of multiple clients in both state and federal court, and strategizing with National Coordinating Counsels regarding case themes, defense strategy, and trial and settlement solutions. |
Dennis J. Paustenbach, PhD, CIH, DABT Paustenbach and Associates
Dennis J. Paustenbach, PhD, CIH, DABT is a board-certified toxicologist and industrial hygienist with nearly 35 years of experience in risk assessment, environmental engineering, ecotoxicology, and occupational health. He is currently an independent consultant. He was the President of ChemRisk, both before and after the merger with Cardno, which is a consulting firm which specializes in human and ecological risk assessment, as well as and risk analysis of consumer products, contaminated sites, pharmaceuticals and medical devices. He was also for several years a Vice President of Exponent, and prior to that, President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of McLaren-Hart Environmental, a nationwide consulting firm of 600 persons. Dennis specializes in the areas of industrial and environmental toxicology, occupational health, historical state-of-knowledge regarding environmental issues, and ecological and human risk assessment. He has directed the scientific aspects of toxic tort cases. He has also provided expert witness testimony in public meetings and trials concerning the health effects of chemicals in sediments, air, soil, consumer products, groundwater, and the workplace. |
David G. Sarvadi Partner
Keller and Heckman LLP
David G. Sarvadi practices in the areas of occupational health and safety, toxic substance management, pesticide regulation, employment law, and product safety. Mr. Sarvadi represents clients before a variety of federal and state enforcement agencies in legal proceedings involving OSHA citations, EPA Notice of Violations, TSCA consent orders, CPSC Notices, FIFRA Stop Sale Use and Removal Orders, and EEOC Charges of Discrimination. He works with clients in developing, reviewing, and auditing compliance programs in all of these areas, and in obtaining agency rulings on proposed or novel activities and questions, seeking interpretations of regulations as they apply to specific sets of facts. He has a background in occupational safety and health, having worked as an industrial hygienist for more than 15 years and became a Certified Industrial Hygienist in 1978, a designation he held until he voluntarily relinquished it in 2010. Prior to becoming an attorney, he was a principal in a small consulting firm, and managed a corporate industrial hygiene and product safety program for a Fortune 500 company. Mr. Sarvadi was selected by the National Academy of Sciences to participate in a panel of the Institute of Medicine that was asked to review a study by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health on the use of respirators in the U.S. He was asked to participate because of his expertise in law and industrial hygiene. |
Caroline M. Tinsley Tucker Ellis LLP
Caroline M. Tinsley with Tucker Ellis, defends leading product manufacturers in mass tort and product liability matters, with particular expertise in medical device and pharmaceutical liability. Caroline manages complex and individual litigation for manufacturers and distributors of consumer products, pharmaceuticals, and medical devices. She is experienced in multidistrict litigation and class action product litigation in industries ranging from board games to medical devices and pharmaceutical products. She also defends clients in matters involving products such as all-terrain vehicles, industrial equipment, amusement rides, scaffolding, manufactured homes, and aviation. Experienced in e-discovery issues, Caroline manages large-scale document productions for clients, and advises clients with respect to data privacy and data collection matters. She also handles all aspects of state and federal civil litigation and defends clients in general civil and business litigation matters. Litigation is a stressful time for companies, and each litigation presents unique challenges and concerns. Caroline works as a trusted partner to find innovative solutions to address clients' needs. Bringing levity to high-stress situations is one of Caroline's hallmarks. Caroline is the Program Co-Vice Chair for the 2021 Talc Litigation Virtual Seminar. |
Edward R. Ulloa Partner
Hawkins Parnell & Young LLP
Edward R. Ulloa is a partner in the Los Angeles office of Hawkins Parnell Thackston & Young LLP. Ulloa is an experienced trial attorney whose practice involves the defense of clients in high-risk, mass tort litigation, including asbestos, chemical exposure, flammable fabric and automotive product liability actions. Ulloa has served as first-chair trial counsel in over 50 jury trials and has represented manufacturers of naval and industrial equipment, automotive friction and gasket materials, and joint compound and drywall materials, and flammable fabrics at trial. Ulloa is highly experienced in the successful argument of summary judgment and pretrial motions and is involved in the development of litigation and trial strategies for high-risk mass tort litigation clients across the nation. Ulloa supervises other attorneys in the representation of products liability matters and negotiates on behalf of clients at court mandated settlement conferences. He represents clients in fact and expert witness depositions in cases in across the country and is involved in pre-litigation investigation of actions involving clients on a national basis. Edward is the Program Co-Vice Chair for the 2021 Talc Litigation Virtual Seminar. |
Amanda Webber Allianz Resolution Management