Brian W. Shaffer

Brian also litigates multidistrict litigation proceedings and class actions, and regularly defends clients against consumer protection claims brought by state Attorneys General and private plaintiffs. His clients include leading companies in the construction, building products, energy, defense, aerospace, nuclear, life sciences, and technology industries.

Brian has tried to verdict jury, bench and arbitration cases involving product liability, breach of contract, fraud, and civil conspiracy in a number of different jurisdictions and before a number of different tribunals. Brian has handled post-trial proceedings and appeals in state and federal courts around the country, and has a strong record of success in these matters. In commercial disputes, Brian represents both plaintiffs and defendants. On the plaintiff side, Brian has secured seven- and eight-figure verdicts and other important relief; on the defense side, he has successfully defeated and resolved nationwide class actions and other “bet the company” litigation through vigorous defense efforts and creative approaches to settlement.

Courts regularly cite significant decisions Brian has earned for his clients. In one case where Brian served as lead counsel for a major pharmaceutical company in litigation involving the 340B drug discount program, his client earned a unanimous US Supreme Court decision. In another, he secured the dismissal of a nationwide RICO class action. Recently, he prevailed in the Third Circuit – after winning at trial – in a precedential ruling addressing the proper test for trademark ownership in a Lanham Act dispute between a manufacturer and its distributor. 

Brian was an author of the ABA’s Model Jury Instructions: Construction Litigation (Second Edition), and is an adjunct Professor at the University of Pennsylvania Law School. As part of his active pro bono practice, Brian represents persecuted individuals seeking asylum in the United States.

Government Programs and Construction Projects Litigation

• Representation of a management and operating agent of the U.S. Department of Energy/National Nuclear Security Agency in complex, multiparty contract disputes before the Civilian Board of Contract Appeals.
• Representation of a Fortune 100 company in a complex series of indemnity claims and lawsuits arising from the construction of a $1 billion natural gas–fired, combined-cycle electric generating facility.
• Representation of an owner and prime contractor in a large, multiparty dispute involving the Tennessee Valley Authority’s Cumberland Fossil Plant in Cumberland, Tennessee.
• Representation of a contractor in a large, multiparty dispute involving a federal project in Canaan, Pennsylvania.
• Representation of a U.S. construction management company in claims and disputes arising from a state prison project.
• Representation of a major subcontractor in disputes arising from the construction of Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.
• Representation of a major subcontractor in claims arising from construction of Citizen's Bank Ballpark in Philadelphia.

Products Liability/Mass Torts

• Representation of leading international medical imaging company in MDL and state court personal injury proceedings nationwide alleging personal injuries from MRI gadolinium-based contrast agents; successfully opposed MDL petition.
• National coordinating counsel representing Fortune 100 food service, facilities and uniform services provider in product liability and tort cases across the US.
• Representation of a specialty chemical company with respect to claims alleging personal injuries resulting from welding, cutting tools, fluids, cleaners, and other industrial solvents.
• Representation of multiple defendants with respect to asbestos-related personal injury cases around the United States.
• Representation of a medical device company in personal injury lawsuits around the United States involving allegations of ventilator malfunction, product defects, and failure to warn.
• Representation of a national chemical company in class action litigation involving personal injuries and medical monitoring claims related to alleged chemical exposures.
• Representation of multinational companies with respect to workplace “mass actions” alleging exposure to harmful products.

• Arbitration of post-closing dispute on behalf of specialty chemical company regarding disputed earn-out payments; complete defense victory for client. 
• Seven-figure bench trial and appellate victory, including award of attorneys’ fees, on behalf of reflective insulation manufacturer against former US exclusive distributor for breach of contract, willful trademark infringement and fraud.
• Arbitration of post-closing dispute involving deferred payments owed under asset purchase agreement involving mining and quarry operations; client awarded equitable relief.
• Eight-figure jury verdict on behalf of pre-engineered building manufacturer against product supplier for fraud and breach of contract. 
• Representation of global mobile terminal manufacturer in multiple state-wide class actions alleging product defect, breach of warranty and violations of state unfair trade practice laws.
• Representation of a contract manufacturer of orthopedic implants in “bet the company” claims of fraud, breach of contract, and warranty allegations arising after reports of failures led to a worldwide recall of the company’s implants.
• Representation of one of the world's leading specialty biopharmaceuticals companies in a breach of contract claim filed by a generic drug manufacturer.
• Representation of an international manufacturing company in a dispute involving theft of trade secrets by a former employee.
• Representation of a life sciences client in a matter involving misappropriation of trade secrets by a competitor.
• Representation of a medical device company in a multimillion dollar commercial dispute involving material breaches of complex licensing and distribution agreements.

Civil Fraud/Consumer Protection/False Claims Act

• Representation of a major pharmaceutical company in class action litigation involving the U.S. government’s 340B drug discount program, including allegations of fraud and breach of government contract.
• Representation of a leading multinational pharmaceutical manufacturer in False Claims Act and fraud litigation brought by plaintiffs, state attorneys general, pension funds, and private insurers.