Mitchell Breit - New York, NY

Overview

Mitchell Breit is a partner at Simmons Hanly Conroy. With a legal career spanning 35 years, Mr. Breit’s practice is focused on consumer class actions and mass torts of national scope. Of note, he was actively involved in the multidistrict litigation concerning the BP Gulf Oil Spill, as well as the multidistrict litigation concerning Toyota Unintended Acceleration.

Mr. Breit was instrumental in settling a seminal case against Bank of America involving debit card overdraft fees. In addition, he was one of the lead counsel in settlements of environmental class actions against Honeywell, Inc. involving contamination of properties in the vicinity of a manufacturing facility in Tampa, Florida, and recently against Conoco involving contamination of properties in Pensacola, Florida.

Mr. Breit also litigates cases involving defective medical and pharmaceutical products. He served on the Plaintiffs’ Executive Committee in the ReNu MoistureLoc® litigation (In re: Bausch & Lomb, Inc. Contact Lens Solution Products Liability Litigation-MDL 1785) and as Liaison Counsel in New York State consolidated Bextra-Celebrex litigation.

Earlier in his career, Mr. Breit was class co-counsel in groundwater contamination litigation in the Southern District of New York involving the gasoline additive MTBE and was co-counsel in union health and welfare fund tobacco litigation, which included multiple class actions in numerous jurisdictions.

Mr. Breit has been a frequent panelist at national litigation conferences involving toxic and mass torts, class actions and groundwater contamination, including Mealey’s, HarrisMartin, Practicing Law Institute and multiple bar association conferences.

Mr. Breit received his B.A. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1972 and his J.D. from Southwestern University School of Law in Los Angeles in 1979. He is admitted to practice in New York, New Jersey, and Virginia, multiple federal courts, and the U. S. Supreme Court.

Pending Class Actions

• Reichardt et al v. Electrolux Home Products – defective residential electrical and gas oven ranges
• Stewart v. Electrolux Home Products – defective residential electric ovens
• Bianchi et al v. Samsung Electronics America, Inc. – defective built-in-door refrigerator icemaker
• Elfaridi et al v. Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC – defective panoramic sunroofs
• Johnson v. Nissan North America, Inc. et al – defective panoramic sunroofs
• Beaty et al v. Ford Motor Company; Anderson v. Ford Motor Company – defective panoramic sunroofs
• Malizia et al v. FCA US LLC; Williams et al v. FCA US LLC – engine manufacturing defect causing heating and cooling systems to fail
• In Re: Dollar General Corp. Motor Oil Marketing and Sales Practice Litigation – sale of obsolete motor oil
• Davidson et al v. Apple, Inc. – iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus touchscreen defect
• Meek v. Skywest, Inc. et al – ramp agent wage and hour claims

Representative Cases

• Country Breeze Ventures, LLC v. Jordan Outdoor Enterprises LTD., et ano. – breach of contract, fraudulent inducement and tortious interference with business
• Ligia Pires v. The Bowery Presents LLC – consumer class action on behalf of concert ticket purchasers for defendant’s violations of New York’s Arts and Cultural Affairs Law
• Stevenson v. Mazda – consumer class action for defective variable valve timing in defendants’ vehicles
• Thomas v. ConocoPhillips, Inc., Circuit Court, Escambia County, Florida – class action settlement involving homeowners’ diminution in value claims as a result of contamination plume emanating from defendants’ facilities in Pensacola
• Closson v. Bank of America, Superior Court, San Francisco – $35 million class settlement involving overdraft fees
• Jones v. Honeywell, Circuit Court, Hillsborough County, Florida – settlement of class action involving homeowners’ diminution in value claims as a result of contamination emanating from former Honeywell facility in Tampa
• In re: Bausch & Lomb, Inc. Contact Lens Solution Products Liability Litigation, MDL 1785 – Member, Plaintiffs’ Executive Committee
• In re Bextra and Celebrex Marketing, Sales Practices and Products Liability Litigation – New York State Court Liaison Counsel