John J. Haggerty
Partner
At a Glance

John is a member of the Firm's Management Committee and Chair of the Firm’s Business Litigation Group.  His practice focuses on complex commercial, class action, product liability and mass tort litigation.  He is former General Counsel and member of the board of directors of ICI Paints. John represents companies in nationwide product liability litigation, including tobacco, lead paint and welding rod litigation.  He has extensive trial experience in both federal and state courts throughout the United States. John is one of only 113 attorneys nationally to be named to the 2007 BTI Client Service All-Star Team for Law Firms in a survey of corporate counsel from 250 Fortune 1000 clients.  He has repeatedly been recognized by Chambers USA as one of Ohio’s leading commercial litigators.

Representative clients in recent public matters include: Altria Group, Inc., Avery Dennison, Cleveland-Cliffs, Eaton Corporation, Exact Software, FirstEnergy, Great American Insurance, IMG, Mittal Steel, KeyBank, Lincoln Electric, Linde Gas LLC, NCR Corporation, Philip Morris, Procter & Gamble, Progressive, SPX Corporation and Westfield Group.

Practices/Industries
Litigation
Class Actions
Complex Business
Fire Litigation
Mass Tort/Occupational Exposure
Product Liability

Technology
Intellectual Property/Litigation

Areas of Concentration
  • Complex Business and Commercial Litigation
  • Class Action Litigation
  • Product Liability and Mass Tort Litigation
Education
Franklin and Marshall College (B.A., cum laude, 1989) Phi Beta Kappa

Temple University School of Law (J.D., cum laude, 1992)
Representative Experience
  • Litigated complex cases for major corporations involving business and commecial, mass tort and product liability, class action and antitrust disputes.
  • Represented major corporations in nationwide litigation, including tobacco, lead paint, asbestos and welding rod litigation.
  • Successfully tried numerous cases in federal and state courts.
  • Argued numerous cases before state and federal appellate courts.
  • Extensive federal and state court mediation and arbitration experience.
  • Extensive class action and multidistrict litigation experience.
  • Former General Counsel and member of the Board of Directors of ICI Paints (formerly The Glidden Company).
  • Managed product liability, toxic tort, environmental, employment, commercial, insurance, trade secret and intellectual property litigation throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia and Latin America.

 

Honors/Distinctions

Named to The BTI Client Service All-Star Team for Law Firms in a survey of corporate counsel from 250 Fortune 1000 clients (2007)

Ranked as one of Ohio's leading General Commercial Litigation lawyers by Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business (2005, 2006 and 2007)

Named an "Ohio Super Lawyer" in a survey of Ohio lawyers by Law & Politics and Cincinnati magazines (January 2008)

Named an "Ohio Super Lawyer Rising Star" in a survey of Ohio lawyers by Law & Politics and Cincinnati magazines (July 2005, 2006 and 2007)

Professional Affiliations

American Bar Association

Ohio State Bar Association

Pennsylvania Bar Association

Defense Research Institute

International Association of Defense Counsel

American Inns of Court (William K. Thomas Chapter - Barrister)

Ohio Association of Civil Trial Attorneys

Community Involvement
The Cleveland Clinic's Children's Hospital (Leadership Board)
Admissions
State of Ohio
State of Pennsylvania
State of New Jersey
U.S. Supreme Court
U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit
U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio
U.S. District Court, District of New Jersey
U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania
U.S. District Court, Middle District of Pennsylvania
U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania