Robert A. Limbacher, a partner at Goodell, DeVries, Leech & Dann, LLP, heads the firm’s Philadelphia office. Mr. Limbacher recently joined Goodell DeVries from Dechert, LLP, where he was a partner and former chair of its mass torts and product liability group.
Mr. Limbacher focuses his practice on defending clients in sophisticated product liability and complex commercial litigation claims against individual and class action lawsuits nationwide. In addition, he has tried cases in various jurisdictions around the country.
Since 2006, Mr. Limbacher has been recognized as among the top product liability lawyers in the country by Chambers USA, a referral guide to leading lawyers in the United States based on the opinions of their peers and clients. In the 2008 edition, Chambers noted he is "a fantastic trial lawyer with great presence and ability." He has also been recognized in The Best Lawyers in America for mass tort litigation and product liability law since 2007. Mr. Limbacher's trial victories have been highlighted in national publications, including The National Law Journal and The Wall Street Journal.
While at Dechert, Mr. Limbacher spearheaded the defense of Amgen in connection with litigation and investigations arising out of its prescription medications used to treat anemia. He also represented Amgen in response to several consumer fraud class actions, securities litigation, government investigations, Congressional inquiries, and an SEC investigation. More recently, Mr. Limbacher was involved in the defense of Pfizer in the hormone therapy litigation. And he recently conducted two major litigation risk assessments involving a highly successful prescription medication already on the market, and a promising drug in development prior to launch.
Additionally, Mr. Limbacher served as trial counsel for Wyeth in various fen-phen cases pending in state court in Philadelphia. He was lead trial counsel for Wyeth in several different trials, and obtained defense verdicts on eight of the nine plaintiffs. Mr. Limbacher was also a major part of Dechert's national counsel team for GlaxoSmithKline, defending the company against more than 10,000 individual personal injury lawsuits and class actions concerning Baycol, a cholesterol-lowering drug, in federal and state courts nationwide. He was asked to serve as trial counsel for GSK in the first Baycol case to go to trial. Mr. Limbacher also served as national counsel for Baxter Healthcare Corporation in the AIDS/Hemophilia litigation for several years, and tried cases for Baxter around the country involving several plaintiffs.
Mr. Limbacher has served as lead trial counsel in numerous cases in courts in Pennsylvania, Texas, Louisiana, Arizona, and California, among others. Earlier in his career, Mr. Limbacher was actively involved in the defense of Philip Morris in smoking and health cases.
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SIGNIFICANT REPRESENTATIONS
- Lead trial counsel for Wyeth in multiple diet drug trials involving a total of nine plaintiffs, obtaining defense verdicts on eight of the nine plaintiffs, with the remaining plaintiff awarded only nominal damages. In one of the trials, Mr. Limbacher achieved an unprecedented result, persuading the jury to find in favor of Wyeth in Phase II (liability) after the same jury had awarded two plaintiffs $5.5 million in Phase I (damages).
- Lead trial counsel in a bellwether jury trial that involved claims brought by the parents of a deceased hemophiliac who was infected with the AIDS virus allegedly as a result of his use of an anti-hemophilic factor concentrate processed by various pharmaceutical companies, including Baxter. The trial lasted nearly four months, and the jury returned a verdict in favor of Baxter. The jury awarded the plaintiffs more than $35 million against two other defendants, but the trial court ultimately entered a verdict in favor of all defendants based on the statute of limitations.
- Co-lead counsel in a six-week trial in state court in Los Angeles. The case involved a young hemophiliac who was infected with the AIDS virus and died allegedly as a result of his use of Baxter's prescription medication. The jury returned a defense verdict.
- Trial counsel for GlaxoSmithKline in the first case to go to trial alleging injury from the use of the statin medicine, Baycol. GSK was dismissed on the eve of trial. In addition, lead trial counsel in another Baycol case that settled after jury selection and arguments on pretrial motions on terms highly favorable to the defendants.
- Lead trial counsel in six bench trials that were tried simultaneously in state court in New Orleans. The cases involved claims brought by HIV-infected hemophiliacs, or their parents. The evidence was heard over the course of several months, and the court ultimately ruled that all six cases were barred by the applicable statute of limitations.
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Texas A&M University, B.A., cum laude, 1977
University of Texas, J.D., 1981, member of the University of Texas Law Review
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- Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
- United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
- United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
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- Product Liability Advisory Council
- Philadelphia Bar Association
- Defense Research Institute
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