DRI Faculty List

Fire Science and Litigation Seminar

Grand Hyatt Washington | Washington, DC | September 13 - 14, 2018


K. Scott Barnhill, PE
P.E.
Investigative Forensic Specialists

K. Scott Barnhill, PE is the principal of Investigative Forensic Specialists, PLLC a consulting engineering firm with laboratory facilities in Raleigh, NC. He is a Certified Fire Investigator (IAAI-CFI) and a Certified Fire and Explosion Investigator (NAFI-CFEI). Scott has been involved in forensic fire investigations for over 32 years concentrating in origin and cause determinations of fires and explosions. He has extensive experience with fires associated with major and portable appliances, as well as natural gas and propane related matters. He frequently conducts product testing and analysis for potential fire causation.


Daniel James Cooper
LitStrat Inc

Daniel James Cooper is the President of LitStrat Inc. While at LitStrat, he has worked on hundreds of jury and bench trials. The cases have generally involved complex civil claims in the areas of intellectual property, antitrust, securities, products liability, professional malpractice, and commercial contracts.Mr. Cooper is a graduate of Brown University, Harvard University's Graduate School of Education, and Columbia University's School of Law. After law school he clerked for Judge Jack Weinstein (United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York). He then spent several years in private practice specializing in complex commercial cases before serving as Vice President for Corporate Administration at ICN Pharmaceuticals. In 1996, Mr. Cooper joined Dr. Louis Genevie at LitStrat.


Scott E. Dillon, PE
P.E., CFEI
Crane Engineering

Scott E. Dillon, PE is a licensed professional engineer with more than 16 years of experience in the areas of fire and explosion investigation, fire protection engineering and fire science. Scott provides clients with expert consultation regarding fire protection and alarm systems, life safety, fire dynamics, fire testing as well as compliance with codes and standards. Scott has extensive experience performing investigations of fires involving fuel-gas systems, residences, vehicles and industrial facilities.


John P. (Jack) Freedenberg, CFEI
Partner
Goldberg Segalla LLP

John P. (Jack) Freedenberg, CFEI, a founding partner of the firm, concentrates his practice in the areas of products liability, catastrophic personal injury, and intellectual property litigation. He has handled over 150 trials, 100 of them to verdict, and has had many summary judgments granted making trial unnecessary. Jack serves as national coordinating counsel for two major manufacturers, and he has handled the defense of numerous products liability actions around the United States. These have included catastrophic personal injury cases and major fire damage cases, and they have involved appliances, household products, controls, power generating and other heavy equipment, high-end products, lift trucks, electrical systems, and aircraft engines. As a Certified Fire and Explosion Investigator (CFEI), Jack provides Goldberg Segalla clients with a strong competitive advantage in litigation involving damage and injury from fires. He is actively and deeply involved in the investigation phase of each fire case, and in the courtroom, he brings the weight of fire investigation credentials that often match or exceed those of opposing expert witnesses. He has participated in dozens of fire scene inspections and more than 100 laboratory inspections of fire scene artifacts, and he has conducted hundreds of depositions and dozens of trials in fire-related cases.


Adam Goodman
S-E-A

Adam Goodman is a Fire Protection Engineer/Fire Investigator with S-E-A. In addition to fire/explosion origin and cause, he analyzes incidents involving fire-related deaths/injuries, fire suppression and detection system failures (water-based, commercial kitchen, special hazard, smoke/fire alarms), fire department responses/operations, confined spaces and carbon monoxide exposures. Analysis can include fire testing and research, fire dynamics, flame spread, computer fire modeling and code analysis. He is also an active firefighter and has served as a Chief Officer.


Lisa P. Gruen
Partner
Ericksen Arbuthnot

Lisa P. Gruen is a partner with Ericksen Arbuthnot in Los Angeles, CA. She co-chairs her firm's Product Liability Practice Group. She is the immediate past Chair of the Fire Science & Litigation Specialized Litigation Group. In addition to being a litigator for a variety of civil actions, Ms Gruen has been "boots on the ground" at fire scenes involving catastrophic personal injury and property damage on behalf of various manufacturers and distributors. She has defended numerous lawsuits involving consumer and industrial products for national and international manufacturing and service corporations.


Stacey Rose Harris
DiMuroGinsberg PC

Stacey Rose Harris is in her fifteenth year of practice as a commercial and civil litigator. She has been with DiMuroGinsberg for the past ten of those years, where she is now a partner. Ms. Harris' practice includes defense of attorney disciplinary matters before the Virginia State Bar, as well as a variety of professional liability matters. Prior to joining DiMuroGinsberg, Ms. Harris was part of the commercial litigation team at Hunton & Williams. She graduated from the University of Virginia School of Law in 2003, and is a Northern Virginia native and proud graduate of TJHSST. Presently Ms. Harris serves on the Board of Directors for the Northern Virginia Chapter of the Federal Bar Association. She also represents the Alexandria Circuit on the Virginia State Bar Council.


Kevin Hecksher, EIT, CFEI, CVFI
Jensen Hughes

Kevin Hecksher, EIT, CFEI, CVFI is a Senior Forensic Electrical Consultant with Jensen Hughes with over 37 years' experience with computers, electrical, and control systems. Mr. Hecksher attended his higher education later in life and graduated from Oklahoma City Community College with an Associate's in Science in Engineering in 2009, then went on to complete his Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from the University of Oklahoma in 2012. While attending college, Mr. Hecksher owned his own IT consulting firm, and continues working today with IoT devices as one of his main hobbies. Currently Mr. Hecksher is heading the Data Forensics division within Jensen Hughes, providing clients with the resources needed in cases of data loss, IP theft, HR issues, fraud, harassment, and illegal activities.


Stephen M. Hill
Jensen Hughes

Stephen M. Hill is a Senior Fire Protection Engineer with Jensen Hughes. He has 21 years of experience and provides litigation support services involving fire and explosion investigations and fire protection system performance. He conducts fire testing, fire and egress modeling, analyses involving fire dynamics, spread and heat transfer, code compliance assessments, and performs structural fire protection and building materials evaluations. Mr. Hill also has experience in building, fire and life safety code consulting.


Jeffrey A. (Jeff) Holmstrand
Partner
Grove Holmstrand & Delk PLLC

Jeffrey A. (Jeff) Holmstrand is a member at Grove, Holmstrand & Delk, PLLC, in Wheeling, West Virginia. His practice focusses on defending products liability claims, including those brought against pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers; mass torts/class actions of all sorts; and complex insurance disputes. AV-rated by Martindale-Hubbell, he has been named a Lawyer of the Year by Best Lawyers in the areas of Appellate Practice, Product Liability Litigation - Defendants, and Mass Tort Litigation/Class Actions - Defendants.


Zuhair M. Ibrahim, PhD
LPI Inc

Zuhair M. Ibrahim, PhD is a Director at LPI Inc. He applies the principles of mechanical engineering, thermodynamic, and fluid dynamic to the study of fires, explosions and processes in power plants, refineries and chemical plants. Over the past 12 years, he investigated numerous incidents, including gas explosions, dust explosions, and pyrotechnic mishaps. He served on NFPA 495 (Explosive Materials Code), and is currently principal member of NFPA 37 (Internal Combustion Engines).


Lynne O. Ingram
Member
Campbell Campbell Edwards & Conroy

Lynne O. Ingram defends manufacturers, contractors, and property owners in complex civil litigation matters throughout the country, from inception through mediation and trial. Prior to entering private practice, Lynne was an ADA in Philadelphia, where she tried over 40 felony jury trials. Lynne is the co-chair of her firm's Diversity Committee, active in DRI, and volunteers at her local hospital's NICU.


Thomas J. (TJ) Jarzyniecki, Jr.
Partner
Kightlinger & Gray LLP

Thomas J. (TJ) Jarzyniecki, Jr. is a partner at Kightlinger & Gray LLP in Indianapolis, where he chairs of the firm's Product Liability Practice Group. He devotes much of his practice to and therefore has extensive experience dealing with fire-related matters. He routinely handles large losses involving fires and explosions causing personal injuries, fatalities and property damage. He uses his 30 plus years of experience to spearhead pre-suit investigations, including evidence preservation, expert retention and early claim evaluation. His trial experience finds him handling cases relating to a wide range of products as well as defending fire suppression system installers and inspectors.


Matthew J. Jeske, CBE, ACE
Chief Technology Officer
Crane Engineering

Matthew J. Jeske, CBE, ACE is a certified data forensic examiner, assisting clients with critical data-loss cases, industrial incidents and provides data forensic support for cases involving intellectual property theft, fraud, harassment and other breaches of data security. He has 20 years of experience in information technology. Matt is a certified forensic examiner. He holds a degree in Network Administration and speaks to industry associations regarding data forensics and security.


Jonathan G. Jordan, PE, CFEI
Senior Staff Consultant
Engineering Systems Inc

Jonathan G. Jordan, PE, CFEI of Engineering Systems Inc. in Dallas specializes in electrical engineering issues and has performed numerous investigations into fires caused, or allegedly caused, by electrical issues. His experience includes evaluation of electronics products and their failure modes to determine whether they adhered to relevant safety standards. Mr. Jordan is a licensed Professional Engineer in multiple states. He and his firm have extensive experience investigating, testing, and refuting experts' various theories that lithium-ion batteries caused fires.


Mark D. Katz
Partner
Coronado Katz LLC

Mark D. Katz is a founding member of Coronado Katz LLC in Kansas City, Missouri. He kicked off his three decades of jury trial experience as an assistant prosecutor in Jackson County, Missouri. Since then, his practice has been devoted to the defense of product manufacturers, public entities, employers, insurance companies and their insureds.


Harri K. Kytomaa, PhD, PE, CFEI
Vice President/Principal Engineer
Exponent

Harri K. Kytomaa, PhD, PE, CFEI is Principal Engineer and Group Vice President at Exponent and specializes in mechanical engineering and the analysis of thermal and flow processes. As a professor at MIT, he has taught the subject of heat transfer including both the theory and testing associated with burn injuries. At Exponent, Dr. Kytomaa has been retained to work and to testify on burn injuries in product liability cases. His experience includes burn injuries imparted by radiation, convection and conduction.


Sean D. Magenis
Partner
McCoy Leavitt Laskey LLC

Sean D. Magenis represents clients in claims ranging from products liability, fuel marketing, professional negligence, and property loss resulting from fire or explosion. With significant experience in defending claims asserting fire losses, Sean routinely manages loss investigations, coordination and execution of effective fire scene and laboratory examinations, and defends clients in proceedings before courts nationwide. Sean consistently provides his clients with effective and responsive advocacy.


Christina Marinakis, JD, PsyD
Senior Consultant
Litigation Insights

Christina Marinakis, JD, PsyD has assisted trial counsel with jury selection in venues across the country. Drawing from backgrounds in law, psychology, and jury research, she routinely drafts juror questionnaires and voir dire questions for a variety of case types. Through her experience conducting focus groups, mock trials, and post-trial interviews, she has analyzed hundreds of jurors, and she uses this information to develop jury profiles for use during jury selection. .


Perry W. Miles IV
McGuireWoods LLP

Perry W. Miles IV represents corporate defendants in high-exposure product liability matters both nationally and regionally. He has tried to verdict numerous matters in federal and state courts in Virginia and other states. He has also represented corporate clients in commercial litigation matters, class actions, warranty and consumer fraud litigation, toxic tort, and personal injury cases. He has handled all aspects of defense litigation in single, class action and multidistrict litigation, including advanced motions practice; corporate witness preparation; developing technical defenses and expert witness testimony; excluding and limiting adverse expert testimony; internal investigations; litigation testing; trial work; and appellate practice.


Delmar R. (Trey) Morrison III, PhD, PE, CFEI
Principal Engineer
Exponent

Delmar R. (Trey) Morrison III, PhD, PE, CFEI practice areas encompass product safety, product liability, and process safety through hazard and risk analysis, failure analysis, and post-incident investigation. He specializes in evaluations of origin, cause, and engineering issues related to catastrophic incidents involving fires, explosions, and chemical process technology. His expertise includes chemical engineering, fire dynamics, process safety management, and the system safety of products and industrial equipment. Dr. Morrison's practical research encompasses self-heating materials and reactive chemical hazards and evaluating scenarios such as spontaneous ignition of vegetable oil-contaminated fabrics and self-heating of reactive chemicals.


Nancy A. Nord
Olsson Frank Weeda Terman Matz PC

Nancy A. Nord is Of Counsel to the Washington DC law firm Olsson Frank Weeda Terman Matz. She spent 8 years as a CPSC Commissioner, including three years as acting chairman of the agency. Prior to the CPSC, she held a number of positions in both government and the private sector.


Nicholas C.(Nick) Pappas
Member
Frost Brown Todd LLC

Nicholas C.(Nick) Pappas is a member of Frost Brown Todd LLC, where he concentrates his practice on the defense of construction, agricultural and mining equipment and automobiles. Nick represents clients in lawsuits in state and federal courts throughout the United States, and has tried cases to defense verdicts in Alabama, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, South Dakota and Wisconsin. He also successfully argued cases in front of the Indiana Court of Appeals, Indiana Supreme Court and the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals. Nick chaired the DRI 2012 Product Liability Conference. He is a past chair of the ACMIE SLG, and he was the 2010 Defense Trial Counsel of Indiana Defense Lawyer of the Year. He is the Chair of DRI's Product Liability Committee.


Ian T. Ramsey
Stites & Harbison PLLC

Ian T. Ramsey is a trial attorney with Stites & Harbison PLLC. He is a member of the Committee for the Fire Science and Litigation Specialized Litigation Group. A Certified Fire and Explosion Investigator, he routinely works with experts to analyze fire scenes and products in defense of product manufacturers and insurers. Ian is an early adopter of technology to improve and make more cost effective the defense of clients in fire cases. For every client matter that he handles he follows Stites & Harbison's "Ten Imperatives of Client Service" -- be accessible, be reliable, be responsive, provide assurance, show empathy, pay attention to tangibles, communicate, show initiative, add value, and recover from service errors. He was again nominated by his peers as a Kentucky Super Lawyer and is rated AV Preeminent by Martindale-Hubbell.


John P. Reagan, PE
Project Engineer
Schaefer Engineering Inc

John P. Reagan, PE has been providing services in the field of Electrical Engineering for over 30 years. He is a Professional Engineer with a degree in Electrical Engineering. He is a Certified Fire Investigator (IAAI-CFI) and a Certified Fire and Explosion Investigator (NAFI-CFEI) John has provided consulting services and testimony in the areas of electrical system and equipment failure analysis, and has been successful in defending products against false claims of liability on hundreds of fire and electrical injury incidents.


Kathryn A. (Katy) Regier
Counsel
Sandberg Phoenix & von Gontard PC

Kathryn A. (Katy) Regier is an attorney with Sandberg Phoenix & von Gontard P.C. in its Kansas City, MO office. She has a wide range of civil litigation experience including matters involving fires, explosions and carbon monoxide exposure in fatality, serious injury and high-dollar property damages cases. Ms. Regier also consults with companies on warning, training and safety measures. While in law school, she was Articles Editor for the Kansas Law Review and participated in the Judicial Clerkship Clinic at the Kansas Court of Appeals. Ms. Regier is admitted to practice law in Kansas, Missouri and California.


Bradley D. (Brad) Remick
Shareholder
Marshall Dennehey Warner Coleman & Goggin PC

Bradley D. (Brad) Remick defends complex product liability cases for small, medium and large manufacturing companies and their distributors. He has defended the manufacturers of tools, electrical components, scaffolding and lifts, tires, automatic doors, machinery, and manufacturers of complex heat exchangers and chemical pumping systems. Brad is a nationally certified fire fighter and holds over 50 different certifications.


Andrew E. Stead
Partner
McMillan LLP

Andrew E. Stead is a litigation partner in McMillan's Calgary office. Andrew has extensive experience in both litigation and arbitrations, including defending product liability claims, energy (oil and gas), class actions and construction disputes. Andrew has successfully acted for numerous automobile, recreational vehicle, snowmobile and all-terrain vehicle manufacturers.


Samuel G. Sudler III
Senior Project Engineer
S-E-A

Samuel G. Sudler III earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Pittsburgh. He specializes in analyzing the failure of electrical components and systems, electrical faults and malfunctions, and possible failure modes. Mr. Sudler has more than 10 years of experience relating to industrial and manufacturing facilities installing, troubleshooting, and repairing electrical equipment. His experience has allowed him to successfully conduct investigations concerning consumer and vehicle products produced by leading manufacturers in product liability litigation..


Gregg A. Tatarka
Partner
Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker LLP

Gregg A. Tatarka focuses on managing national counsel coordinating programs for products liability, with a particular specialization in fire litigation. Generally, he represents manufacturers of consumer electronic products and appliances, such as microwave ovens, air conditioners, clothes dryers, and a variety of products containing lithium-ion batteries. He has represented clients in over 200 claims and lawsuits involving alleged failures of lithium-ion batteries. Gregg defends manufacturers, distributors and retailers of consumer electronics and appliances in product liability litigation and claims concerning fires, burn injuries, fatalities, electrocutions/electric shocks, hearing loss and other bodily injuries.


The Honorary John M. Tran
Circuit Court of Fairfax County Virginia

The Honorary John M. Tran graduated from the George Washington University in 1981 and the GW Law School in 1984.On July 1, 2013, he became the 63rd Circuit Court judge to serve in Fairfax County since 1742. Judge Tran also serves on the Virginia Supreme Court's Advisory Committee on Rules of Court.


Allison A. Waase
Associate
Kaufman Borgeest & Ryan LLP

Allison A. Waase is an associate with Kaufman Borgeest & Ryan LLP in New York. Ms. Waase focuses in the fields of general liability, fire and explosion, premises liability, product liability, construction, and labor law. She represents clients, including building owners, management companies, hotels, business owners, security companies, and trucking companies in all aspects of civil defense. Ms. Waase serves on the steering committee for the DRI Young Lawyers Committee and as a young lawyer liaison to the DRI Product Liability Committee and DRI Fire Science and Litigation Committee.


James E. Weatherholtz
Partner
Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP

James E. Weatherholtz is a Partner in the Charleston, South Carolina office of Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP. He received his B.A., magna cum laude, from The Citadel in 1996, and his J.D. from the University of Virginia in 1999. His primary areas of practice are product liability - including building products and class actions - and construction law. Mr. Weatherholtz is a Past Chair of the South Carolina Bar Construction Law Section. He is also an active member of the DRI (The Voice of the Defense Bar) Product Liability Committee, having served as program chair, chair of the building products specialized litigation group, and currently as Vice Chair of the Committee. He is AV rated by Martindale Hubbell and listed in The Best Lawyers in America in the field of Construction Law. He is the Chair of the Construction Practice Team at Womble and is a frequent lecturer on construction and product liability topics.