• Class action defense
• Mass Torts
• Complex commercial litigation
• Environmental and Toxic Tort Litigation
• Appellate

• Represent retailer in national defense of state and federal wage and hour class actions.
• Won motions to decertify class and exclude plaintiffs' expert testimony in largest employment class action in Massachusetts history.
• Successfully opposed class certification in federal multi-district litigation and in state court wage and hour actions filed in Illinois, Kentucky and New York.
• Successfully opposed motion for class certification for national retailer in federal court in action brought under the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act.
• Successfully opposed dozens of class certification motions as lead national counsel for pharmaceutical companies in diet drug multi-district litigation.
• Successfully excluded plaintiffs' expert testimony as lead defense counsel in evidentiary Daubert hearing in diet drug multidistrict and state court litigation.
• Won summary judgment and subsequent First Circuit appeal for an automobile distributor in a class action alleging civil RICO, antitrust and automobile dealer statute violations in connection with the distributor's sale of automobile accessories to its dealers.
• Successfully represented agribusiness client in Federal Circuit appeal of order dismissing claims in putative class action involving intellectual property rights to seed genetics.
• Successfully represented national retail clients in defense and settlement of consumer fraud class actions involving allegations of deceptive advertising.
• Successfully represented snack food company in threatened consumer class action alleging deceptive advertising.
• Successfully represented automobile dealers in settlement of consumer class actions under Massachusetts General Laws chapter 93A and state truth-in-lending laws.
• Successfully represented managed care company in provider antitrust and chapter 93A class actions.
• Successfully represented a major pharmaceutical company in the defense and settlement of a putative nationwide Average Wholesale Price class action.
• Successfully defended national shoe retailer in federal trade secret litigation.
• Successfully represented health care company in wrongful termination and health care fraud litigation against sellers in roll up transaction.
• Represented major oil company in national defense of more than 100 environmental lawsuits involving property damage and personal injuries allegedly caused by leaking underground storage tanks and pipelines.
• Successfully represented CEO of publicly traded high technology company in connection with SEC enforcement proceeding involving revenue recognition issues.
• Successfully represented individual defendant in trial of SEC enforcement proceeding for alleged insider trading.
• Successfully served as class certification counsel to state farm bureau federation in action involving state civil RICO claims.
• Negotiated favorable settlements for chemical manufacturer in private and government litigation involving release of vapors from waste drums.
• Represented numerous companies in defense of federal and state superfund litigation.
• Served on successful defense team in landmark toxic tort trial made famous in the book A Civil Action.

• Boston Bar Association
  • Vice President, 2008 - 2009
  • Chair, Board of Editors, Boston Bar Journal, 2007-present (Board Member, 2004-2007)
  • Treasurer, 2006-2007
  • Chair, Nominating Committee, 2005
  • Member, Nominating Committee, 2004
  • Co-Chair, Litigation Section, 2002-2004
  • Founder and Co-Chair, Class Actions Committee, 2000-2002
  • Chair, Federal Practice and Procedure Committee, 1996-1998
  • Fellow, Boston Bar Foundation
• American Bar Association
  • Co-Chair, Programs Subcommittee, Class Actions and Derivative Suits Committee, Section of Litigation, 2005-present
  • Fellow, American Bar Foundation
• Member, Board of Directors, New England Legal Foundation, 2007 - present
• Special Counsel, Committee on Professional Responsibility for Clerks of the Courts (appointed by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court), 2003-2004
• The College of Wooster
  • Alumni Trustee, 2007 - present
  • Member, Alumni Board, 2003-2006
  • Chair, Boston Area Leadership Group, 2004-present
  • Chair, Distinguished Alumni Awards Committee, 2004-2006
• Member, Council of Overseers, The Huntington Theater Company, 2007 - present

• Recipient, "Founders Award for Tireless Efforts Against Environmental Racism," Alternatives for Community & Environment, 2003
• Recognized, "Massachusetts Super Lawyer," Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, 2004, 2005, and 2007

• Law Clerk, Honorable Joseph L. Tauro, United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts, 1979-1980

Articles

• Acknowledged, Kevin M. Clermont and Theodore Esienberg, "CAFA Judicata: A Tale of Waste and Politics" 156 U. Pa. L. Rev._____, June 2008.
• Quoted, "DNA Test Making Its Way Into Civil Litigation Arena," Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, May 5, 2008
• Author, "In Re IPO Securities Litigation: The Second Circuit Clarifies The Standards for Resolving Class Certification Motions," ABA Class Actions & Derivative Suits Committee Newsletter, Spring 2007
• Quoted, "Choosing a Class Action Representative," Lawyers Weekly USA, April 9, 2007
• Quoted, "Clampdown on Class Action Certifications," Compliance Week, January 23, 2007
• Mentioned, "Certification Issues Linger in Class Actions," Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, December 18, 2006
• Mentioned, "Class in Wal-Mart Case is Decertified," Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, December 8, 2006
• Mentioned, "Bench Tactics:  Lawyers Share Unique Defense Moves," Boston Business Journal, July 28, 2006
• Co-Author, "Not So Confidential: Government Demands for Privileged Materials," New England In-House, February 2006
• Author, "Class Certification and Class Settlements in Environmental Cases," American Bar Association, Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Section, Toxic Torts and Environmental Law Committee Newsletter, Spring 2005
• Mentioned, "Class Action Law Slow to Impact System," Lawyers Weekly USA, September 30, 2005
• Mentioned, "New Law Limits Class Actions, " Lawyers Weekly USA, March 14, 2005
• Mentioned, "Products Liability Litigation: Lawyers Implore Corporations to Consider the Risks," Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, January 10, 2005
• Author, "Aspinall: Defining Injury in Consumer Class Actions," Boston Bar Journal, January 2005
• Author, "Class Certification in RICO Fraud Cases," For the Defense, December 2004
• Author, "SJC Lowers Bar for Certifying Deceptive Advertising Class Actions," New England In-House, October 2004
• Mentioned, "Lawsuit Over Light Cigarettes Is Allowed", Boston Globe, August 14, 2004
• Mentioned, "Budget Woes May Soon Slow Down Federal Court," Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, July 26, 2004
• Co-Author, "Class Certification in the War Against Big Food," American Bar Association, Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Section, Newsletter of the Toxic Torts and Environmental Law Committee Newsletter, Summer 2004
• Mentioned, "Putting a Number on Intangible Damages," Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, February 9, 2004
• Mentioned, "Slackers Need Not Apply," Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, February 9, 2004
• Mentioned, "Courts: Tech Rollout Begins," Boston Business Journal, November 21-27, 2003
• Mentioned, "Class Actions Gain New Attention," National Law Journal, Massachusetts - Report, November 6, 2003
• Mentioned, "Cigarettes Class-Action Is Approved by the SJC," Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, August 8, 2003.
• Mentioned, "Punitives 'Crackdown' Could Lead to More Settlements," Lawyers Weekly USA, June 9, 2003
• Co-Author, "The Problem of Class Certification in Product Liability Cases," American Bar Association, Section of Litigation, Mass Torts Litigation Committee Newsletter, May 2002
• Author, "Teaching Technology: Courtroom Becomes a Classroom," Mass High Tech, March 2002
• Co-Author, "Owning Daubert: Challenging Expert Testimony as a Defense Strategy," For the Defense, November 2000

Speeches        

• Panelist, "Perilous Waters: Navigating the New Massachusetts Wage and Hour Law", Boston, Massachusetts, May 20, 2008.
• Moderator, “Class Actions and Reactions: Trends and Directions in Class Action Litigation,” New England Legal Foundation  Spring Breakfast Program, Boston Massachusetts, April 8, 2008
• Panelist, "Class Actions and Consumers," American Bar Association Teleconference, June 20, 2007
• Moderator, "Looking Beyond the Pleadings in Class Certification Motions," American Bar Association Teleconference, June 13, 2006
• "Remarks to the Lawyers Council of Thailand Concerning U.S. Class Action Experience," American Bar Association, Asia Law Initiative, Washington, D.C., October 17, 2005
• "Forum Selection for Complex Tort Cases," The Boston Bar Association, Boston Massachusetts, May 17, 2005
• "Please Don't/Do Drink the Water: Trends in Toxic Tort Litigation," American Bar Association, Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Section, Toxic Torts & Environmental Law Committee, Phoenix, Arizona, April 1, 2005
• "Architecture of a Class Action Case," The Legal Council, Washington D.C., October 13, 2004
• "Ethics and the Class Action Case," The Class Action Litigation Summit, Washington D.C., June 25, 2004
• "Hot Topics in Class Actions," Panel Presentation, The Future of Class Action Litigation in America, American Bar Association, Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Section, Boston, Massachusetts, October 3, 2003
• "The Life Cycle of a Class Action," Program Co-Chair, The Boston Bar Association, Boston, May 5, 2002
• "Class Actions of Mass Tort Claims," Program Co-Chair, The Boston Bar Association, Boston, Massachusetts, May 31, 2001
• "Driving Your New Daubert-Demonstration of Cross-Examination of a 'Plaintiff's Expert' In a Toxic Mold Case," Defense Research Institute, Toxic Torts & Environmental Law Committee, New Orleans, Louisiana, March 9, 2001
• "Class Actions Against Managed Care," American Bar Association, Annual Meeting, New York City, July 8, 2000
• "The New MCO Class Actions," MCLE Health and Hospital Law Conference, Boston, April 12, 2000
• "Class Actions Against Managed Care Companies," Illinois Association of HMOs, Fall Conference, Chicago, Illinois, November 1999
• "Class Action Lawsuits Aimed at Healthcare- Views From the Legal Community," CIBC World Markets Health Care Conference, New York City, October 27, 1999