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Trump Administration’s Assault on the Rule of Law

William A. Ruskin's Toxic Tort Litigtion Blog Posted on March 25, 2025 by William A. RuskinMarch 25, 2025

In his first sixty days in office, President Trump has unleased a two-prong attack on the integrity of the American system of justice. First, he has targeted federal judges who have issued rulings unfavorable to the Administration. With vicious personal ad hominem attacks, he has released the personal information, including home addresses of these judge’s family members, all in an effort to intimidate them into complying with his illegal dictates. Any judge assigned to handle a case involving the Trump Administration now knows that his children or grandchildren and their families may be subjected to harassment and threats. As a result,judges … Continue reading →

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Sanctions Awarded For Deposition Misconduct

William A. Ruskin's Toxic Tort Litigtion Blog Posted on July 19, 2023 by William A. RuskinJuly 19, 2023

All lawyers have had the experience at one time or another of being subjected to abusive discovery tactics during deposition. Although the rules of professional conduct are clear, New York state court judges only infrequently grant meaningful sanctions when this behavior is brought to their attention. As a result, lawyers who engage in sharp practice during deposition discovery may calculate that the likelihood of being sanctioned is low. Until the courts demonstrate a willingness to consistently take a firm stance on abusive discovery tactics, sharp-elbowed lawyers will continue to convince themselves that abusive conduct against an adversary lawyer or adversary … Continue reading →

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The Corrupting Impact of Plaintiff Litigation Advertising

William A. Ruskin's Toxic Tort Litigtion Blog Posted on October 25, 2022 by William A. RuskinOctober 25, 2022

Plaintiff litigation advertising is cynical recruitment tool to enlist potential plaintiffs in mass tort litigation. Litigation advertising furthers three primary objectives (1) enlisting potential plaintiffs in mass tort litigation (2) damaging the reputation of corporate defendants and (3) increasingly the likelihood that corporate defendants do not obtain fair trials in cases in which the advertisers have a financial stake. The most pernicious objective is the contamination of the prospective jury pool on the eve of trial. According to Rustin Silverstein, the President of X-Ante, over $1,000,000,000 is spent each year on litigation advertising at a remarkable burn rate of 27 … Continue reading →

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Why Anchoring Is Effective In Generating Excessive Jury Verdicts

William A. Ruskin's Toxic Tort Litigtion Blog Posted on October 24, 2022 by William A. RuskinOctober 24, 2022

Summation anchoring, requesting that the jury award an unjustifiably high nonecomomic damage award, is a highly effective tactic used by plaintiffs’ counsel. This is particularly the case when sympathetic jurors lack objective means for determining compensation for pain an suffering. Studies have shown that the “more you ask for, the more you get.” Anchoring provides an arbitrary, but psychologically powerful, baseline for jurors who may be struggling with assigning a monetary value to pain and suffering. Mark a. Behrens, Cary Silverman & Christopher E. Appel at Shook Hardy & Bacon have authored a terrific article about this pernicious practice titled … Continue reading →

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New York’s High Court Expands Definition of Family

William A. Ruskin's Toxic Tort Litigtion Blog Posted on March 30, 2021 by William A. RuskinMarch 31, 2021

In Greene v. Esplanade Ventures Partnership, 2021 N.Y. LEXIS 104, the New York State Court of Appeals considered whether plaintiff-grandparent Susan Frierson, who was in close proximity to her two-year old granddaughter when she was tragically struck and killed by falling debris from the a building with an allegedly defective facade, could pursue a claim for bystander recovery under a “zone of danger” theory. The traditional rule in New York has been that only a member of the immediate family could seek recovery for emotional distress as a result of viewing the death or serious physical injury under those circumstances. … Continue reading →

Posted in Emotional Distress, Uncategorized, Zone of Danger | Tagged Battalla v State of New York, bystander recovery, Emotional Distress Claims, fictitious injury, Greene v. Esplanade Ventures Partnership, June Cleaver, Modern Family, negligence, To Kill a Mockingbird, trigger warnings | Leave a reply

New York State Court Leads U.S. In Spoliation Of Evidence Risk

William A. Ruskin's Toxic Tort Litigtion Blog Posted on February 10, 2021 by William A. RuskinFebruary 10, 2021

New York is not the most populous state in the U.S. (it’s fourth), but its state courts litigate more spoliation disputes than any other state. In their recent data-driven analysis, Ronald W. Zdrojeski and Kamryn M. Deegan, lawyers at Eversheds Sutherland (US), make several cogent observations that should cause corporate inhouse counsel to perhaps give greater attention in preparing to litigate their matters in New York. Between December 2015 and December 2020, 226 disputes about destruction of evidence were decided in New York state courts of which 215 were decided by the Supreme Court and 11 by the Court of … Continue reading →

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How Amended Federal Rule 30(b)(6) Will Change Your Practice

William A. Ruskin's Toxic Tort Litigtion Blog Posted on December 26, 2020 by William A. RuskinDecember 26, 2020

With little fanfare, an amendment to Rule 30(b)(6) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure went into effect on December 1, 2020. It is critical that federal practitioners appreciate how the nuances of the amended Rule 30(b)(6) will affect deposition planning strategy in the coming year and beyond. The rule now requires that, “[b]efore or promptly after the notice or subpoena is served, the serving party and the organization must confer in good faith about the matters for examination.” The amended rule attempts to remedy existing entity designee deposition practice, which far too often involves the use of overly broad … Continue reading →

Posted in Federal Court Litigation, Uncategorized | Tagged Amended Rule 30(b)(6), corporate designee, depositions, federal court, Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, James Wagstaffe, Law360, Lexology, litigation tips, Matthew I. Rochman, meet-and-confer, reasonable particularity, William D. Dalsen | Leave a reply

Defending Remote Corporate Depositions in the Covid-19 Era

William A. Ruskin's Toxic Tort Litigtion Blog Posted on May 17, 2020 by William A. RuskinMay 17, 2020

This article will discuss best practices for defendant’s counsel to follow in representing a corporate client remotely (e.g., via Zoom, GoToMeeting, or WebEx). Increasingly, it is the expectation of courts, both state and federal, that deposition discovery will continue during the pandemic. How can you, as the defense lawyer, fulfill your primary duty of providing effective counsel to the client when the prep is conducted long distance and you will not be able to be in the same room as your client during the deposition? In a document-intensive deposition, how can you ensure that the client is fully capable of … Continue reading →

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Infringing Unicorns and Knock-off Elves in the Covid-19 Public Emergency

William A. Ruskin's Toxic Tort Litigtion Blog Posted on March 30, 2020 by William A. RuskinMarch 30, 2020

There are few light moments during a pandemic, but the Order of the Hon. Steven Seeger, a federal district court judge in Chicago sitting in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, issued on March 18, 2020, in an infringement case brought by Art Ask Agency, is scathing. The Order is a biting commentary, penned with deadpan sarcasm, about litigants, such as the plaintiff here, who were clearly oblivious to a “fast-developing public health emergency” in repeatedly demanding that the federal district court hold a hearing to enjoin the sale of “infringing unicorns and … Continue reading →

Posted in Federal Court Litigation, Uncategorized | Tagged Art Ask Agency, coronavirus, Covid-19, Elihu Root, elves and unicorns, Hon. Steven Seeger, pandemic, TRO Application | Leave a reply

NY Appeals Court Shifts Goal Posts For Environmental Class Actions

William A. Ruskin's Toxic Tort Litigtion Blog Posted on December 18, 2019 by William A. RuskinDecember 18, 2019

The decision of the Appellate Division, Third Department, in Burdick v. Tonoga, Inc., decided November 21, 2019, affirms the trial court’s decision certifying four classes, including a medical monitoring class, arising from claims of property damage and personal injury allegedly resulting from PFOA exposure. The decision potentially expands significantly class action plaintiffs’ use of CPLR 901 and CPLR 902, New York’s rules governing class certification, in environmental tort actions. Although the members of the medical monitoring class do not claim to suffer presently from any demonstrated PFOA-related physical injury, the appellate court nonetheless determined that certification of a medical monitoring … Continue reading →

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William A. Ruskin

The Toxic Tort Litigation Blog reports on recent developments and trends in toxic tort, environmental and product liability litigation of interest to the defense bar.  It also explores the convergence of complex science and medicine and the law.
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  • Trump Administration’s Assault on the Rule of Law
  • Sanctions Awarded For Deposition Misconduct
  • The Corrupting Impact of Plaintiff Litigation Advertising
  • Why Anchoring Is Effective In Generating Excessive Jury Verdicts
  • New York’s High Court Expands Definition of Family

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