Dominik D. Alexander, Ph.D., MSPH is a Principal Epidemiologist with EpidStat Institute who trained in cancer prevention and control. He has extensive experience in health research methodology, meta-analysis, and disease causation, particularly in the conceptualization, design, analysis, and interpretation of epidemiologic studies. He has published on a diverse range of topics and types of studies, including original epidemiologic research, qualitative reviews, systematic weight-of-evidence assessments, and quantitative meta-analyses. His expertise in occupational and environmental epidemiology includes exposure to asbestos and asbestos-related disease.

Melvin D. (Mel) Bailey has prosecuted and defended high-profile personal injury, product liability and business litigation cases for more than 25 years. Mr. Bailey is respected for his success as a trial attorney in some of the most challenging venues in the United States, having tried cases in Texas, California, New York, New Jersey, Wyoming, Utah, Oklahoma, Georgia, Maryland, Nevada and Florida. His extensive courtroom experience has resulted in representation of some of the country's most influential corporate clients in complex and high stake litigation.

Katarina (Katie) Barker began her career as a defense attorney in Boston and Rhode Island before joining RiverStone Resources LLC in 2012. As a litigator, her work was mainly focused on toxic tort and asbestos litigation. Katie currently serves as Associate Claims Counsel and Support Manager at RiverStone. In that capacity, her responsibilities include numerous litigation management initiatives as well as advising RiverStone on a variety of litigation practice areas across the country.

Christy Barlow, Ph.D. is an Associate Principal with GZA GeoEnvironmental, Inc. She earned a B.S. in Biology from Eckerd College and a Ph.D. in Cell and Molecular Biology from the University of Vermont. Her dissertation work was directed at understanding the role of cellular signaling in the development of asbestos-related diseases. More recently, she has been involved in reconstructing exposure and assessing risk to consumers, communities, and workers exposed to a variety of chemicals.

John E. (Jeb) Barnes, PhD is a professor at the University of Southern California. After clerking for the US Bankruptcy Court in Chicago and practicing as a commercial litigator in Boston and San Francisco, he returned to graduate school and earned his Ph.D. in political science from UC Berkeley. Jeb has published numerous peer-reviewed books and articles, including work on the obstacles to federal tort reform of asbestos litigation. He's currently working on a project on bias of media coverage of the courts.

Whitney K. Barrows is an attorney with Cetrulo LLP in Boston, Massachusetts. Her practice focuses on toxic tort and asbestos litigation. She has been handling asbestos matters for nearly 10 years. She serves as both national coordinating counsel and local counsel for a number of asbestos clients. Whitney has practiced in the area of complex civil litigation, with a focus on toxic tort and asbestos litigation, since she started with the firm in 2006. She is well-versed in the steps required to mount a successful defense, from pre-suit investigation through trial, for a wide variety of clients, including product manufacturers and distributors. She has focused, in particular, on the development defense experts, marshalling and coordination of discovery, and preparation of cross-examinations and motions to challenge key plaintiffs' experts. Whitney has extensive experience, both as local and national counsel, working with opposing counsel and developing case-specific defenses resulting in the successful dispositions of clients' cases.

Mary Beth Beasley, M.D. is a Professor of Pathology and Head of Pulmonary Pathology at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York, New York. Dr. Beasley is that co-editor of four textbooks on pulmonary pathology and an author or co-author on over 150 journal articles and book chapters on various aspects of pulmonary pathology. Her research interests include cancer invasion genomics and tumor microenvironment. She serves on several national and international pathology panels, including the International Mesothelioma Panel, International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer Pathology Panel and the CAP lung cancer biomarkers panel.

Peter A. Bickswith the Orick law firm is a nationally recognized trial lawyer based in New York. Leading companies such as Johnson & Johnson and Union Carbide repeatedly turn to Peter for their most challenging, high-profile mass tort matters. In recognition of Peter's career trial work, he was inducted into the American College of Trial Lawyers in 2015. Juries have compared him favorably to Johnnie Cochran and F. Lee Bailey. Chambers USA says: "You can put him in front of a jury anywhere and he'll connect."

Bruce T. Bishop is a member of Willcox & Savage P.C. in Norfolk, Virginia. Mr. Bishop has extensive experience since 1977 in toxic tort and environmental litigation. Mr. Bishop has developed a nationwide reputation in the medical and state-of-the-art issues associated with toxic tort litigation, appearing at numerous national seminars on the topic and trying cases throughout the country involving such issues. Mr. Bishop received his B.S. from Old Dominion University and his J.D. from the University of Virginia. Bruce is the co-vice program chair for this program.

Jessica J. Burgasser concentrates her practice in insurance defense. She works extensively with defendants alleged to have used asbestos and provides experienced legal advice to a wide range of asbestos clients, including equipment and friction manufacturers and retailers. Jessica handles all aspects of non-asbestos litigation including other product liability matters, motor vehicle accidents, premises liability, labor law injuries, coverage litigation, and dog bite claims. She was named a Rising Star Super Lawyer in 2014-2018. Jessica is a member of the Defense Research Institute (DRI), Claims and Litigation Management Alliance (CLM), Niagara and Erie County Bar Associations, the New York State Bar Association, and the Bar Association of the Tonawandas (former President).

Marcus A. Carter was born in Chicago, Illinois and primarily raised in Washington D.C. After law school Marcus accepted a position with Locke Liddell & Sapp LLP as a litigation attorney and handled arbitration proceedings and trials on behalf of many clients, including Shell Oil Company, BP Wells Fargo Bank, etc. In September of 2012, Marcus joined Shell's Global Litigation Department managing a variety of Downstream and Upstream matters. Currently, Marcus manages Shell's Asbestos, Silica, Vinyl Chloride, Underground Storage Tanker Reimbursement Dispute and Catalyst litigations and is also the lead attorney on the Medicare Team as well as the Subpoenas Team.

Kathleen (Kate) Chetta is an associate in the Firm's Toxic Tort litigation group. She graduated from Canisius College with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. Prior to attending law school, she worked for the United States House of Representatives in Washington, D.C. Ms. Chetta has litigated complex Toxic Torts, Products Liability and Insurance Defense matters. Prior to living and working in Morristown, New Jersey she worked with a firm in Western New York.

Eric D. Cook of Willcox & Savage, P.C., in Norfolk, Virginia focuses his practice on asbestos defense, products liability, and toxic torts. Eric tries asbestos cases in jurisdictions around the country. He developed an expertise in medical and state-of-the-art issues associated with toxic tort litigation, and routinely handles expert development, deposition, and trial examination issues.

Clancy B. Cornwall is an expert in the identification and analysis of U.S. Navy and merchant ship design, development, construction, maintenance and repair records, plans, and photographs. With over 15 years of extensive research in this subject area, combined with his unique education, training and employment as a licensed engineer aboard U.S. merchant ships, he is able to research, analyze and offer testimony regarding naval and maritime practices and policies from the 1940s through the 1970s.

Evelyn Fletcher Davisis a senior partner at Hawkins Parnell Thackston & Young LLP. As one of the leading toxic tort and product liability defense lawyers in the United States, she has tried, managed, and settled thousands of complex cases. She has litigated cases involving exposures to asbestos, silica, mold, benzene and other chemicals, in addition to personal and commercial insurance liability. She serves over 40 corporations as national, regional, and local counsel with an emphasis on jurisdictions in Florida, Georgia, and Alabama. She is the program chair of this seminar.

James F. Dorion with Willis Towers Watson in New York has decades of experience helping clients maximize asbestos related insurance recoveries. This experience allowed him to develop useful working relationships with "decision maker" contacts in both the US and London insurance markets. Jim has personally negotiated the recovery of many dozens of large settlements. He uses his experience and contacts, along with his legal background and end-to-end knowledge of the insurance business, to provide clients with consultative advice and guidance on the development of insurance recovery strategies.

Mary Margaret Gay is a Director in the Jackson, Mississippi, office of Maron Marvel Bradley Anderson & Tardy LLC. Mary Margaret possesses extensive experience in creating cost-efficient, unified defense strategies to manage special issues arising in mass tort litigation. She works daily to assist defendants, their counsel and insurers with the development of alternative exposure information, and has written several cutting-edge technology platforms to help with this process. In addition, Mary Margaret has lobbied and testified to pass trust legislation.

Elizabeth (Betsy) Runyan Geise is a partner in the D.C. office of Schiff Hardin LLP. She has represented clients in asbestos cases and other civil litigation for over 35 years. She was involved in the infamous Georgine (Amchem v. Windsor) settlement class action in the 1990s that was supposed to end asbestos litigation for all time. Since 2001, she and her colleagues at Schiff have represented a building products manufacturer as national coordinating counsel, helping to manage asbestos cases all over the U.S.

Eric P. Hall is a partner with HeplerBroom LLC. He focuses his practice predominantly toxic torts/product liability, but is also a writer, recording artist, label owner, and Grammy voter. He is admitted in Illinois and Missouri as well as the Central, Southern, and Northern Districts of Illinois and the Western District of Missouri. He is a trial attorney with extensive experience in the development and examination of expert witnesses, as well as the development and defense of corporate witnesses.

Laura Kingsley Hong chair of the Tucker Ellis Mass Tort & Product Liability Group, defends clients in class action, toxic tort, product liability, and commercial litigation. With decades of first-chair trial experience and nearly 20 years as national counsel, she spearheads legislative initiatives and leads strategy for clients. A former law professor of trial tactics, Laura writes and speaks frequently in these areas, as well as ethics, equity and inclusion.

Lori Elliott Jarvis is a partner with Hunton Andres Kurth LLP. Lori's practice focuses on environmental litigation and toxic torts, mass tort litigation and class actions, product liability, multidistrict litigation, general commercial litigation and appellate advocacy. Lori regularly advises the management of public companies and general counsel in connection with complex litigation and strategic reviews of litigation alternatives. She has served as strategic counsel for litigation management, regulatory, legislative and public communication issues. She has also provided strategic pre-market risk analysis for chemical based products.

Alice Sacks Johnston is a partner at Schnader Harrison Segal & Lewis, and chairs the firm's Product Liability Practice Group She lives in Pittsburgh, but her practice has broad geographic scope, focusing on complex product liability defense, commercial litigation, and restrictive covenant/non-compete actions. She serves as national, local and trial counsel to the automotive industry, heavy equipment manufacturers and others in asbestos, benzene, and toxic tort cases, and defends pharmaceutical products and medical devices in state and federal courts.

Maria Katina (KiKi) Karos with the Karos Law Firm is an accomplished trial attorney, known for her creative strategies and ability to effectivly communicate with juries. She has successfully handled litigation matters in state and federal court for almost 30 years, and currently acts as national trial counsel and regional counsel for multiple clients. She focuses her practice on high-stakes catastrophic injury cases and complex business litigation matters. As national trial counsel for several clients, she has defended them in trial not only in her home state of Texas but in approximately 25 states from Los Angeles to Seattle, New York City to Miami. She is also regional counsel for several clients in litigation in Texas. Her vast litigation experience is diverse, concentrating in medical device, environmental and toxic torts, class actions and commercial litigation.

Lisa A. LaConte with the Heyl Royster firm. Lisa's involvement in asbestos litigation began in 1988, just as the first Madison County cases were being defended. Over the past 30 years, she has continued to specialize in the defense of asbestos cases filed in Illinois and Missouri and also serves as National Coordinating Counsel for a product manufacturer. Lisa serves as the firm's Chair of the Toxic Torts Practice Group which defends cases throughout the Midwest, including Wisconsin, Iowa, Indiana, Illinois and Missouri.

John J. (Jack) Laffey has an extensive Product Liability and Commercial Transportation Catastrophic Injury practice that regularly takes him to courts in Wisconsin and across the nation. In his 30 years of practice, Jack has been proud to represent clients in litigation in more than 25 states. He has had more than two dozen jury verdicts since he started practicing law in 1985. Jack has had the unique experience of having been a winning plaintiff's attorney during that time (1989-1995); this provides Jack with a very interesting and productive insight into the thought processes and motivations of his clients' adversaries. Jack's Product Liability experience ranges from industrial machinery (conveyors and overhead cranes) to consumer products (furnaces and smoke detectors) to toxic torts (asbestos, silica and mold) to pharmaceuticals (diet drugs), to outline a few. Jack has been asked to handle and resolve some of his clients' most problematic and dangerous cases in some of the most challenging venues in this country, oftentimes after the discovery has been completed. These engagements have been particularly rewarding personally because of the faith and trust his clients have placed in him. Jack takes that trust very seriously. His Catastrophic practice always presents very "interesting" problems to solve and it centers upon Wrongful Death, Spinal Cord Injury and Traumatic Brain Injury matters. Jack's specialties include: Catastrophic Case oversight and resolution, Trial and Appellate work as well as an extensive mediation practice on behalf of corporate litigants.

David Craig Landin with Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP. David's practice focuses on litigation management, trial and litigation strategies in multi-state and in multi-plaintiff litigation, regulatory, legislative and public communications issues as strategic and trial counsel.

James A. Lowery III is a Partner in the Dallas office of Gordon & Rees and a member of the Environmental/Toxic Tort, Commercial Litigation, Trucking & Transportation and Professional Liability Defense practice groups. Mr. Lowery has achieved favorable verdicts in several high-risk cases on behalf of numerous clients in asbestos litigation. He has first chaired more than 40 major asbestos trials in multiple jurisdictions, including Texas, New York, Pennsylvania, Florida, Massachusetts, Delaware, Ohio, Maryland, Louisiana, Virginia, Illinois and California. Mr. Lowery obtained defense verdicts in asbestos trials in some of the most notorious pro-plaintiff jurisdictions, such as Madison County, Illinois, Beaumont and Orange, Texas and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

David C. Marshall is a partner in the firm of Hawkins Parnell Thackston & Young in Atlanta. He serves as national coordinating counsel and lead trial counsel for various product manufacturers, contractors and premises owners. He is licensed in Georgia, Florida, Illinois, New York, Texas, Missouri and West Virginia. Before entering private practice, he served as an Assistant District Attorney and has tried over a hundred cases to verdict.

Catherine A. Mohan is Chair of McCarter & English's Product Liability, Mass Torts, and Consumer Class Actions group. She is one of the nation's top asbestos defense lawyers, representing clients as both national and regional counsel for more than 30 years. She has worked with every major firm representing asbestos claimants and collaborated with many leading asbestos defense counsel. Ms. Mohan co-founded McCarter's Hartford office and is the firm's first female Treasurer.

Sheila Mulrennan founded the Insurance Archaeology Group (IAG) in 1985. She has been featured in Business Insurance in a survey of "100 Leading Women" and she is one of the nation's foremost specialists in historic insurance research for asbestos and environmental liabilities. Finding the most historic assets and creating efficient systems to access information has enabled IAG's clients to maximize insurance recoveries. Under her direction, IAG has uncovered over $200 billion in historic insurance assets.

Albert H. (Al) Parnell is a nationally recognized trial attorney with Hawkins Parnell Thackston & Young LLP (Atlanta, Austin Charleston, Dallas, Los Angeles, New York, Napa, St. Louis, and San Francisco). He has spent his entire career preparing, managing, and trying product liability, environmental and toxic tort cases. Mr. Parnell has tried more than 300 cases in 32 states. Mr. Parnell, an authority on asbestos medicine, is frequently requested to speak on medical, state-of-the-art, firm management, and ethics issues. He is a founding member of DRI's Law Institute and a former member of the DRI Board of Directors.

Katharine Scott Perry is a litigator with a reputation for effective representation in complex product liability, premises liability, commercial law, insurance coverage, environmental and toxic tort cases, Katharine Perry has won noted victories for her regional, national and multinational corporate clients. She's built her toxic tort practice on a deep foundation of experience, serving on national asbestos litigation defense teams and coordinating complicated, multi-jurisdictional toxic tort litigation. She also has federal and state jury trial experience in medical malpractice matters.

George Pettus, is a writer, recording artist, and producer out of Austin, TX. He has followed in the footsteps of his father MCA Recording Artist George Pettus Sr. He plays keyboard, drums and all stringed instruments. When not producing his own music, he collaborates with other artists such as Melba Moore, 9th Wonder(Soul Council), Raheem Devaughn, Talib Kweli, Rapsody Feat. Common / Childish Gambino, Big Remo, Add 2, Torae, Phonte and Eric Roberson.

Ricky A. Raven is a Partner in the Complex Litigation Group at Reed Smith, LLP and serves as Co-leader of the Mass & Toxic Torts team. Ricky is a trial lawyer who focuses on products liability and mass tort litigation. Ricky has first-chaired more than 115 jury trials to verdict and serves on national trial teams in multidistrict litigation cases. He has been recognized annually by the Best Lawyers in America and Texas Super Lawyers.

Stewart S. Richmond Jr. is an Assistant Vice President of Claims for RiverStone Claims Management, LLC and oversees a complex claims unit that handles the Company's largest APH exposures. Stewart has significant experience and expertise in the management of complex high exposure liabilities including asbestos, pollution, product liability, mass tort, medical malpractice, legal malpractice, construction defect, property, and public entity claims. Prior to joining RiverStone in 2004, Stewart worked as a trial attorney for McLane Graf Raulerson & Middleton PA on insurance, environmental, professional liability and personal injury matters. Stewart received his law degree from Boston College Law School and his under graduate degree from Colby College.

Donna M. Ringo, CIH founder ofDMR & Associates Inc. in Louisville,Kentucky, provides industrialhygiene consulting services toclients, both national andinternational. Ms. Ringo started hercareer in industry as an analyticalchemist before transitioning toindustrial hygiene. Her expertiseincludes employee exposureevaluations and helping employersmanage hazards found in theworkplace. As a consultant since1984, she has provided expertwitness testimony in more than 70asbestos and noise trials.

Meghan L. Riordan is a Partner with Pierce Davis & Perritano LLP. Ms. Riordan is highly experienced in product liability, toxic tort litigation, and premises liability and has defended numerous corporations in occupational exposure cases, including a substantial number of asbestos lawsuits, throughout her legal career. She has participated in all phases of the defense of these matters, from initial discovery through dispositive motions, expert discovery, settlement negotiations, and trial. Ms. Riordan regularly litigates cases in both state and federal courts in Massachusetts and has been consistently successful in obtaining favorable outcomes for her clients. She represents a broad range of manufacturers and suppliers of various types of products and equipment, including those involved in the construction trade, HVAC, automotive industry, aviation industry, marine applications, and various manufacturing facilities.

Gregory M. Sargent is a Complex Claims Analyst at the RiverStone Group since 2012 handling complex asbestos matters involving nationwide asbestos litigation exposure. Proponent of tort system alternatives, alternative fee agreements, and a member of RiverStone's Innovation Working Group. Previously, an insurance defense attorney defending medical and design professionals. 2004 graduate of Boston University School of Law.

Marc C. Scarcella is a Principal and Practice Leader of the Economic & Complex Analytics Practice at Roux Associates. Mr. Scarcella has more than fifteen years of experience providing strategic consulting services and expert testimony regarding issues of economic damages and future risk estimation associated with environmental, product, and commercial litigation. His work has been leveraged in the context of mass torts, class actions, insurance coverage disputes, corporate litigation reserves, corporate transaction due diligence, and bankruptcy estimation.

Frederick C. (Fred) Schaefer is currently Associate Vice President of Claim for Nationwide Indemnity. Fred is tasked with leading the legal team supporting Nationwide Group's Asbestos, Environmental, Long Term Exposure, Toxic Tort and Health Hazard liabilities. Fred graduated with a double major (B.A. Political Science/Economics) from Hobart College in Geneva New York and received his Juris Doctor from the John Marshall Law School in Chicago, Illinois.

Loree J. Shelko is Assistant General Counsel and Director of Litigation at Meritor, Inc. In this role, she develops strategy for and manages the company's litigation docket. She partners with the company's internal business leaders, offering strategic counsel, leading complex and highly technical matters and advising on risk mitigation. She has a proven track record of streamlining processes and reducing costs. She is admitted to practice in New York and New Jersey.

Shawn Shepard is a senior investigative report writer and assistant director with Smith & Carson, an investigative services company specializing in complex fact investigations and juror research and analytics. Shepard focuses on investigations of product liability claims and is a licensed attorney and private detective in Georgia. Prior to joining Smith & Carson, she worked in law practice for eight years and was on the faculty of Georgia State University College of Law.

David B. Sicilia, Ph.D. is the Henry Kaufman Chair of Financial History and Associate Professor of History at the University of Maryland, College Park. A specialist in business, economic, and technology history and modern U.S. history, he is co-author or co-editor of six books and many articles. Professor Sicilia has been interviewed by the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, CNBC, CNN Financial News, Bloomberg Financial Television, National Public Radio, TV1 Paris, and NHK Television Japan, among other major news outlets.

Edward M. Slaughter is a senior partner at Hawkins Parnell Thackston & Young LLP, where he chairs the national toxic tort group. He has been a trial lawyer for more than 20 years. Ed represents corporations and individuals in high-risk litigation involving commercial disputes, product liability, toxic exposures, and employer practices liability claims. He has represented defendants as national trial counsel and national coordinating counsel, including employers, school systems, energy companies, design engineering and construction firms, and manufacturers of dozens of different products. Ed has tried more than 50 cases across the country as lead counsel.

Gail Stockman, MD is a pulmonologist in Corsicana, Texas. Dr. Stockman received her medical degree in 1976 and her Ph.D. in immunology in 1971 from Baylor College of Medicine. She is Board certified in internal medicine and has thirty-eight years of experience in pulmonary, internal, and critical care medicine.

Todd J. Suddleson is a partner in the Dallas office of DeHay & Elliston. He has been active in asbestos litigation for almost 30 years and has tried cases on behalf of numerous companies as a first chair trial attorney. He has obtained favorable verdicts for defendants in various jurisdictions throughout the country including Texas, California, Maryland, Massachusetts, Florida, Washington and Arizona. He has also presented on topics involving asbestos litigation at seminars around the country including DRI and ALI-ABA.

Alexandra Nassopoulos Vilella is a Senior Asbestos Claims Analyst in the Asbestos Strategic Unit at Resolute Management, Inc in Boston, MA. Prior to joining Resolute, Alexandra defended asbestos bodily injury cases in California, Connecticut and Massachusetts.

Erin Voyik is the Director of Claims Legal Counsel at the RiverStone Group, where she's been a part of the Claims Department since 2012. Her team is tasked with finding and retaining effective, efficient, and results-oriented defense counsel. In that role, she is always on the lookout for creative ways to get better results. Prior to RiverStone, she was an attorney in private practice and a judicial clerk. She graduated from Boston College Law School in 2008 and from Hamilton College in 2005.

David A. Warren iis an Assistant Vice President at Resolute Management Inc., working out of its Chicago Office. Mr. Warren graduated from Miami University, earning his B.A., and then earned his J.D. from The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law. Before working for Resolute, David defended asbestos bodily injury claims in Illinois and California, working in several of the most active jurisdictions in the country.

Michael W. Weaver is a partner at McDermott Will & Emery. He focuses his practice on product liability litigation which includes representing medical device, manufacturing, and consumer goods clients in complex litigation matters. Mr. Weaver has significant trial and appellate experience and he serves on a national coordinating team for a Fortune 100 company with more than 20,000 asbestos cases pending throughout the United States.

Amanda Webber is a Claims Specialist at Allianz Resolution Management/San Francisco Reinsurance. Ms. Webber handles asbestos and toxic tort litigation for Allianz insureds nationwide. She also works on strategic initiatives and emerging trends in the industry.