Enter legal issue and location
Washington Complex Litigation Lawyer
Overview
Joe G. Hollingsworth is a nationally renowned courtroom advocate who specializes in trials and appeals and leads a practice group of eighty attorneys. He has been honored three times by The National Law Journal for the year’s Top Ten Defense Wins. He defends cases involving pharmaceutical and medical device products liability, toxic and environmental torts, and consumer products liability, and he prosecutes and defends complex federal claims involving the government...
Joe G. Hollingsworth is a nationally renowned courtroom advocate who specializes in trials and appeals and leads a practice group of eighty attorneys. He has been honored three times by The National Law Journal for the year’s Top Ten Defense Wins. He defends cases involving pharmaceutical and medical device products liability, toxic and environmental torts, and consumer products liability, and he prosecutes and defends complex federal claims involving the government...
Joe G. Hollingsworth is a nationally renowned courtroom advocate who specializes in trials and appeals and leads a practice group of eighty attorneys. He has been honored three times by The National Law Journal for the year’s Top Ten Defense Wins. He defends cases involving pharmaceutical and medical device products liability, toxic and environmental torts, and consumer products liability, and he prosecutes and defends complex federal claims involving the government. Over one hundred opinions arising from his cases are published in the federal and state reporters. On behalf of corporate defendants during more than for decades of private practice, Mr. Hollingsworth has conducted over twenty-five jury trials, ranging in duration from two weeks to over three and a half months. He has argued in the United States Supreme Court, eight U.S. Circuit Courts, seven state supreme courts, many intermediate appellate courts, and before the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation. In total, he has appeared in trial courts in thirty-three states.
Mr. Hollingsworth tries both high-stakes individual cases and cases that form massive serial litigation. Representing Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, he led a team of Hollingsworth LLP lawyers in securing a defense verdict in the second bellwether case chosen for trial in the New Jersey Aredia®/Zometa® serial litigation. Meng v. Novartis Pharm. Corp., No. MID-L-7670-07-MT (N.J. Super. Ct. Law Div. May 15, 2013). This followed his team's victory in Bessemer v. Novartis Pharm. Corp., No. MID-L-1835-08-MT (N.J. Super. Ct. 2010), aff'd, No. L-1835-08, 2012 WL 2120777 (N.J. Super. Ct. App. Div. June 13, 2012), the first bellwether trial in the Aredia®/Zometa® New Jersey consolidated litigation. In both cases, plaintiffs claimed long term injury due to a side effect of cancer therapy. After brief deliberations, the juries in both Meng and Bessemer responded to the first verdict form question that Novartis Pharmaceuticals did not fail to warn.
Mr. Hollingsworth has been lead counsel in numerous MDLs, serial litigations, and mass torts, representing defendants in Omniscan™ contrast dye litigation and Zometa®/Aredia® bisphosphonate litigation, among other serial litigations. In 2013, Mr. Hollingsworth secured a victory for Firm client, DynCorp International, when the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia granted summary judgment to DynCorp, dismissing the sole remaining human health and medical monitoring claims brought by 3,200 Ecuadoreans claiming personal injury and property damage in connection with counternarcotics aerial herbicide spraying operations in southern Colombia. DynCorp is a contractor to the U.S. State Department and assists with the joint United States-Colombia war-on-drugs initiatives known as “Plan Colombia.” SeeArias, et al. v. DynCorp, et al., 928 F. Supp.2d 10, 2013 WL 821168 (D.D.C. Feb. 19, 2013). He subsequently defended those victories before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. See Arias v. DynCorp, 752 F.3d 1011 (D.C. Cir. 2014).
Mr. Hollingsworth served as lead trial counsel for Norfolk Southern in the largest single tort case in South Carolina history and one of the largest tort cases recently tried anywhere, in which textile manufacturer Avondale Mills sought hundreds of millions of dollars in compensatory damages as well as punitive damages for alleged property damage to its plants following a January 2005 train derailment and chlorine release. Avondale Mills v. Norfolk Southern, Civ. No. 1:05-2817-MBS (D.S.C. 2008). After one month of an anticipated three-month trial, the parties agreed to a confidential settlement. In June 2004, Mr. Hollingsworth conducted the first jury trial in the country involving allegations that hernia repair mesh—used in approximately 700,000 hernia surgeries per year in the U.S. alone—can cause infertility. The Austin, Texas federal jury deliberated for fifty-eight minutes, returning a unanimous verdict for the nation’s largest medical device manufacturer. In 1997, Mr. Hollingsworth tried the first case alleging that the drug Parlodel® could cause serious cerebrovascular events in new mothers, in a case that had substantial pretrial publicity, including being featured on the NBC show “NOW.” The case was tried in state court in Rankin County, Mississippi. Mr. Hollingsworth secured a defense verdict that was upheld by the Mississippi Supreme Court. In another jury trial involving pretrial publicity — a “60 Minutes” documentary about his chemical manufacturer client — Mr. Hollingsworth won a defense verdict after an eleven-week trial. SeeJones v. Velsicol Chem. Corp., 625 N.Y.S.2d 934 (N.Y. App. Div. 1995) (affirming denial of motion for new trial).
In his appellate practice, Mr. Hollingsworth secured, on behalf of General Electric, a decision eliminating collateral tort liability for property damage due to the release of a persistent contaminant. Based on 100-year-old national precedents, the Georgia Supreme Court issued a unanimous opinion on questions certified from the Eleventh Circuit, leading to the vacatur of a $20 million verdict in a case tried by another firm. See General Elec. Co. v. Lowe's Home Centers, Inc., 608 S.E.2d 636 (Ga. 2005) (answering questions certified by Eleventh Circuit); Lowe's Home Centers, Inc. v. General Electric Co., 404 F.3d 1311 (11th Cir. 2005) (vacating judgment in favor of plaintiff).
In the course of their representation of manufacturers and other corporations in the defense of thousands of cases nationwide involving pharmaceuticals and medical devices, Mr. Hollingsworth and his group have pioneered important developments in the law critical to corporate tort defendants. Notable examples include four important and widely cited U.S. circuit court Daubert decisions, see,e.g., Rider/Siharath v. Sandoz Pharm. Corp., 295 F.3d 1194 (11th Cir. 2002) (affirming summary judgment in pharmaceutical case); Hollander v. Sandoz Pharm. Corp., 289 F.3d 1193 (10th Cir. 2002) (same); Glastetter v. Novartis Pharm. Corp., 252 F.3d 986 (8th Cir. 2001) (per curiam) (same); and Schudel v. Gen. Elec. Co., 120 F.3d 991 (9th Cir. 1997) (overturning $14 million jury verdict on Daubert grounds in PCB/solvents case). Mr. Hollingsworth and his group have also secured important precedent-setting victories ranging from winning summary judgment on various grounds, see, e.g., Davidson v. Velsicol Chem. Corp., 834 P.2d 931 (Nev. 1992), cert. denied, 507 U.S. 1051 (1993) (first state supreme court post-Cippolone FIFRA preemption decision); Conde v. Velsicol Chem. Corp., 804 F. Supp. 972 (S.D. Ohio 1992), aff'd 24 F.3d 809 (6th Cir. 1994) (first post-Daubert summary judgment opinion in 6th Cir.); Bly v. Tri-Continental Indus., 663 A.3d 1232 (D.C. 1995) (affirming summary judgment in leukemia cases), to establishing important procedural principles that upset plaintiffs’ case planning, see, e.g., In Re Consolidated Parlodel Litig., 22 F. Supp. 2d 320 (D.N.J. 1998)(deconsolidating claims on forum non conveniens grounds); Yocham v. Novartis Pharm. Corp., No. 07-1810, slip. op., 2007 WL 2318493 (D.N.J. Aug. 13, 2007) (denying motion to remand case brought against in-state defendant where defendant removed case prior to being served). Mr. Hollingsworth and his firm also counsel clients with respect to due diligence and insurance coverage issues relating to toxics liabilities.
Mr. Hollingsworth's practice also emphasizes the pursuit of claims against the government on behalf of contractors and others. He represented Glendale Federal Bank, and successfully argued its breach-of-contract case before the United States Supreme Court, in the landmark Winstar litigation, see 518 U.S. 839 (1996), an oral argument featured in The American Lawyer, and a case that concluded with the award of $387 million to his client Glendale. On a national basis, he has pursued indemnity claims against the government on behalf of two former asbestos-containing product manufacturers. In such federal claims litigation, Mr. Hollingsworth has appeared in numerous specialized forums, including the full en banc Federal Circuit.
Over the course of his career, Mr. Hollingsworth has been sought out hundreds of times for various speaking engagements. He has appeared frequently on behalf of the American Enterprise Institute, the Brookings Institution, Northwestern Law’s Searle Center, and George Mason University Law & Economics Center as a lecturer in federal and state judge education workshops and related seminars. He also lectures, and is consulted by media interests, about litigation strategies in complex litigation. See, e.g., The National Law Journal (strategies for successful Daubert challenges). And, over twenty years ago, Mr. Hollingsworth published the first article on Daubert (Mealey's 1993).
Mr. Hollingsworth is a member of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce National Chamber Litigation Center's Constitutional and Administrative Law Committee, a group that helps the Chamber select appropriate cases for amicus participation in the highest appellate courts in the country. He is a member of the Defense Research Institute and the National Association of Railroad Trial Counsel. Mr. Hollingsworth serves on the Georgetown University Law Center Board of Visitors. He is a board member of the Atlantic Legal Foundation and of the Chesapeake Legal Alliance (a non-profit dedicated to using the law to improve the quality of the Chesapeake Bay).
Mr. Hollingsworth is named in the 2020 edition of Best Lawyers for Product Liability Litigation-Defense, in the 2019 Washington DC edition of Super Lawyers for Civil Litigation-Defense, and as a 2019 AV Preeminent® Lawyer by Martindale-Hubbell™. He is a Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America, which recognizes excellence among U.S. litigation and trial counsel.
About Joe G. Hollingsworth
Current Employment Position(s)
- Partner
Practice Areas
- Complex Litigation
- Class Action Defense
- Common Carrier Liability
- Environmental
- Federal Claims
- Financial Institutions
- Government Contracts
- Investigations
- Pharmaceutical Products
- Toxic Torts & Products Liability
Qualifications
Bar Admissions
- District of Columbia
- U.S. Supreme Court
- U.S. Court of Appeals 2nd Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals 3rd Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals 4th Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals 6th Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals 7th Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals 8th Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals 9th Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals 10th Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals 11th Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals District of Columbia Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals Federal Circuit
- U.S. District Court of the District of Columbia
- U.S. District Court Central District of Illinois
- U.S. District Court District of Maryland
- U.S. District Court Western District of Michigan
Other Affiliations
- Atlantic Legal Foundation (Board Member)
- Chesapeake Legal Alliance (Board Member)
- Georgetown University Law Center Board of Visitors (Board Member)
- Litigation Counsel of America (Fellow)
- National Association of Railroad Trial Counsel
Education
- Georgetown University Law Center, Washington, District of Columbia, 1974
J.D. - DePauw University, Greencastle, Indiana, 1971
B.A.
Honors: With Distinction
Office Information
Address
1350 I Street, Northwest Washington, DC 20005
Phone
Fax
- (202) 682-1639
Websites
Achievements
Other Sources of Feedback About Joe G. Hollingsworth
Included on the 2023 Washington DC list
Past Lists
- 2022 Washington DC Super Lawyers list
- 2021 Washington DC Super Lawyers list
- 2020 Washington DC Super Lawyers list
- 2019 Washington DC Super Lawyers list
- 2018 Washington DC Super Lawyers list
- 2017 Washington DC Super Lawyers list
- 2016 Washington DC Super Lawyers list
- 2015 Washington DC Super Lawyers list
- 2014 Washington DC Super Lawyers list
- 2013 Washington DC Super Lawyers list
- 2012 Washington DC Super Lawyers list
- 2011 Washington DC Super Lawyers list
- 2010 Washington DC Super Lawyers list
- 2009 Washington DC Super Lawyers list
- 2008 Washington DC Super Lawyers list
- 2007 Washington DC Super Lawyers list
Honors
- Mr. Hollingsworth has been honored three times by The National Law Journal for the year’s Top Ten Defense Wins—in 1998, 2001, and 2005.
When viewing a listing, consider the state advertising restrictions to which lawyers and law firms must adhere, as well as our FindLaw.com Legal Directory disclaimer. Some lawyers publish comparative information regarding the services that they provide which may be subject to specific comparative communications restrictions.
Write Your Review
Fields marked with an * are required
Map Location
How do I choose a lawyer?
Consider the following:
- Comfort Level
- - Are you comfortable telling the lawyer personal information? Does the lawyer seem interested in solving your problem?
- Credentials
- - How long has the lawyer been in practice? Has the lawyer worked on other cases similar to yours?
- Cost
- - How are the lawyer's fees structured - hourly or flat fee? Can the lawyer estimate the cost of your case?
- City
- - Is the lawyer's office conveniently located?
Not sure what questions to ask a lawyer?
Here are a few to get you started:
- How long have you been in practice?
- How many cases like mine have you handled?
- How often do you settle cases out of court?
- What are your fees and costs?
- What are the next steps?
Want to check lawyer discipline?
It is always a good idea to research your lawyer prior to hiring. Every state has a disciplinary organization that monitors attorneys, their licenses, and consumer complaints. By researching lawyer discipline you can:
- Ensure the attorney is currently licensed to practice in your state
- Gain an understanding of his or her historical disciplinary record, if any.
- Determine the seriousness of complaints/issues which could range from late bar fees to more serious issues requiring disciplinary action.