Ben focuses his litigation practice on health-related matters, including representation of pharmaceutical manufacturers in consolidated proceedings and individual cases in state and federal courts. He regularly deposes treating physicians and expert witnesses, has worked extensively with experts and company witnesses in complex cases, and has experience in strategy development and managing teams. Ben’s trial experience includes first-chair work as well as playing a trial support role for lead counsel in various cases. In addition to his product liability work, Ben has experience representing clients in class actions, commercial disputes, employment matters, medical professional liability cases, and personal injury suits.
Overview
Ben focuses his litigation practice on health-related matters, including representation of pharmaceutical manufacturers in consolidated proceedings and individual cases in state and federal courts. He regularly deposes treating physicians and expert witnesses, has worked extensively with experts and company witnesses in complex cases, and has experience in strategy development and managing teams. Ben’s trial experience includes first-chair work as well as playing a trial support role for lead counsel in various cases. In addition to his product liability work, Ben has experience representing clients in class actions, commercial disputes, employment matters, medical professional liability cases, and personal injury suits.
Practice Areas
Experience
- In re: Pradaxa (Dabigatran Etexilate) Prods. Liability Lit., Coordinated Proceedings:
- Superior Ct., Jud. Dist. of Hartford, CT (Complex Lit. Docket)
- Superior Ct of CA, County of San Francisco, J.C.C.P No. 4863
- In re: Propecia (Finasteride) Prods. Liability Lit., Coordinated Proceedings:
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York, (12-MD-2331 (JG)(VVP))
- Superior Court of New Jersey Law Division: Middlesex County (Case No. 623, Civil Action)
- Mary Christine Lorenz v. Federal Express Corp., U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia; summary judgment for defendant (2012 U.S. Dist. Lexis 116464).
- Linda Smith v. Federal Express Corp., Chancery Court of Hamilton County, Tennessee (first chair trial counsel); jury verdict for defendant (2011).
- Assisted trial team in Robinson v. McNeil Consumer Healthcare, et al.; United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, 2009.
- Howard Johnson, Inc. v. Holyfield, 2009 WL 1349197 (Tenn. Ct. App., 2009).
- Assisted trial team in Zundel v. Johnson & Johnson, et al.; Superior Court of New Jersey Law Division: Middlesex County, New Jersey, 2009.
- Zoroufie v. Lance, Inc., 2008 WL 2669105 (W.D. Tenn., 2008).
Distinctions
- Best Lawyers in America®
- Health Care Law, 2024
- Product Liability Litigation - Defendants, 2024
- Tennessee Bar Association Leadership Law, Class of 2013
- Senior Attorney, Federal Express Corporation, Litigation, 2010-2012
- Fellow, Memphis Bar Foundation
Bar Admissions
- Tennessee, 2004
- Mississippi, 2004
- U.S. District Courts
- Mississippi: Northern, Southern
- Tennessee: Western
Education
- Vanderbilt University Law School, J.D., 2004
- Executive Editor, Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law
- Moot Court Board
- Vanderbilt University, B.A., English, 2000
Associations
- International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC)
- Tennessee Bar Association
- Mississippi Bar Association
- Federal Bar Association, Mid-South Chapter (Chapter President, 2022)
- Harry Phillips American Inn of Court
- Memphis Bar Association
- American Bar Association
Papers, Presentations & Publications
- Author, "The Room Where It Happens: Remote Depositions in a Post-COVID World," Pro Te: Solutio, Vol. 14, No. 2, June 2021.
- Speaker, “Personal Jurisdiction Post-Daimler: State of Law and Strategy,” International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC) Mid-Year Meeting, La Quinta, CA, February 11, 2018.
- Co-Author, “Personal Jurisdiction Post-Daimler – As Plaintiffs Test Exceptions to Daimler’s Narrow Path, All Eyes on Appellate Courts,” 84 Def. Couns. J. ___ (2017).
- Author, “Good Result Under Apex Doctrine,” Pro Te: Solutio, Vol. 8 No. 3, December 2015.
- Chapter Author, "Litigators on Experts: Strategies for Managing Expert Witnesses from Retention through Trial," (W.G. Couture & A.W. Haynes eds., ABA Publishing, 2010).
- Author, “Case v. Law: A Multi-State Survey Concerning Recognition of Medical Monitoring Claims,” Pro Te: Solutio, Vol. 2. No. 4, October 2009.
- Author, "Lone Pine Orders: A Defense Perspective," ABA Mass Torts Newsletter, Fall 2009.
- Author, "Obtaining Your First Temporary Restraining Order and Injunction," American Bar Association Young Lawyers Division, 201 Practice Series: Beyond the Basics, July 2009.
- Author, “Putting the Horse Back in Front of the Cart – Lone Pine Orders in Multi-Plaintiff Pharmaceutical Litigation,” Pro Te: Solutio, Vol. 2, No. 2, April 2009.
- Co-Author, "Recent Developments and ‘Hot Topics,’" International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC) Corporate Counsel College, 2009.
- Author, “Mass Torts In A World of Settlements,” Pro Te: Solution, Vol. 1, No. 3, July 2008.
- Co-Author, "Consolidation: Tempering the Temptation for Judicial Economy," ABA Section of Litigation Trial Practice Journal, Vol. 22, No. 3, Summer/Fall 2008.
- Co-Author, "Cross-Examining the Personal Injury Plaintiff" Defense Research Institute (DRI) Annual Conference of Young Lawyers Division, 2006.
- Author, "Order in the Court: Judicial Stability and Democratic Success in Haiti," 37 Vand. J. Transnat’l L. 555, 2004.