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Lisa represents manufacturers of medical devices, prescription drugs, and OTC drugs in product liability and complex litigation. She has more than 20 years of experience defending corporate clients in appellate and trial courts throughout the country, and is admitted in both Florida and California. Her work has a particular emphasis on issues that regularly recur in medical device and pharmaceutical product liability litigation, including preemption, as well as other types of complex litigation, such as class issues, consumer fraud claims, third party payor claims, and punitive damages.
Experience
Representative matters
Representative matters
Brown v. Abbott Labs., No. 25 CV 2792, 2025 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 146022 (N.D. Ill., July 30, 2025)
Krantz v. Abbott Labs., No. 25 CV 2934, 2025 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 146008 (N.D. Ill., July 30, 2025)
Doucet v. Abbott Labs., Inc., No. 25-405, 2025 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 102731 and 2025 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 133845 (E.D. La., July 14, 2025)
Experience
Brown v. Abbott Labs., No. 25 CV 2792, 2025 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 146022 (N.D. Ill., July 30, 2025)
Krantz v. Abbott Labs., No. 25 CV 2934, 2025 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 146008 (N.D. Ill., July 30, 2025)
Doucet v. Abbott Labs., Inc., No. 25-405, 2025 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 102731 and 2025 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 133845 (E.D. La., July 14, 2025)
Authored the DRI Center for Law and Public Policy’s comment opposing proposed amendments to Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 29 and testified at the Judicial Conference Advisory Committee on Appellate Rules hearing.
Jackson v. Abbott Labs. Inc., 2024 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 170172 (W.D. Ky. Sep. 19, 2024)
Otis v. Thoratec Llc, 2023 Fla. Cir. LEXIS 641 (Cir. Ct. of the 13th Judicial Cir. of Fla., Hillsborough County June 16, 2023)
McGuire v. Abbott Labs., Inc., No. 1:22-CV-197, 2023 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 77682 (E.D. Tex. May 3, 2023)
Azizov v. Garland, 2023 U.S. App. LEXIS 3286, 2023 WL 1879478 (9th Cir. Feb. 10, 2023, unpub.)
Vargas v. Garland, No. 15-73633, 2022 U.S. App. LEXIS 31394 (9th Cir. Nov. 14, 2022)
Holland v. Abbott Labs., Inc., No. 6:20-cv-1469-CEM-EJK, 2022 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 160884 (M.D. Fla. Sep. 7, 2022)
Bernasek v. Gatz MD., 2021 WL 2152968 (Fla. Cir. Ct. May 20, 2021)
Ford Motor Company v. Montana Eighth Judicial District Court, Nos. 19-368, 19-369 (2020) (Amicus brief for DRI-The Voice of the Defense Bar supporting specific jurisdiction standard requiring a causal connection to the legal claims advanced)
Medical Mutual of Ohio v. AbbVie Inc., et. al., 784 Fed. App’x 457, 2019 WL 5887194 (7th Cir. Nov. 12, 2019)
Kline v. Zimmer, Inc., 2018 WL 1980957 (Cal. App., April 27, 2018) (unpub.)
Allbright v. Teva Pharm. USA, Inc., 290 F. Supp. 3d 1321 (S.D. Fla. 2017)
Freed v. St. Jude Medical, Inc ., 2017 WL 4102583 (D. Del. Sept. 15, 2017)
Adams v. American Medical Systems, Inc., 705 Fed. Appx. 744, 2017 WL 3668930 (10th Cir. Aug. 25, 2017)
Caplinger v. Medtronic, Inc., 921 F. Supp. 2d 1206 (W.D. Okla. 2013), affirmed 2015 WL 1786742 (10th Cir. Apr. 21, 2015)
Gisvold v. Merck & Co. Inc., 2014 WL 6765718 (S.D. Cal. Nov. 25, 2014) (Emily Field, Judge Nixes False-Labeling Suit Over Merck Sunscreens, Law 360, Nov. 26, 2014).
Coleman v. Medtronic, Inc., 223 Cal. App. 4th 413 (2014)
Stengel v. Medtronic, Inc., 676 F. 3d 1159 (9th Cir. 2012); 704 F.3d 1224 (9th Cir 2013) (en banc) (defense of Medtronic in a preemption case).
Beavers-Gabriel v. Medtronic, Inc., 15 F. Supp. 3d 1021 (D. Haw. 2014)
Martin v. Medtronic, Inc., 32 F. Supp. 3d 1026 (D. Ariz. 2014); see also Martin v. Medtronic, Inc., 2014 WL 6633540 (D. Ariz. Nov. 24, 2014)
Houston v. Medtronic, Inc., 957 F. Supp. 2d. 1166 (C.D. Cal. 2013); see also Houston v. Medtronic, Inc., 2014 WL 1364455 (C.D. Cal. Apr. 2, 2014)
Schuler v. Medtronic, Inc., 2014 U.S. Dist. Lexis 36960 (C.D. Cal. Mar. 12, 2014)
Bagumyan v. Medtronic, Inc., 2010 WL 4009891 (Cal. App. Oct., 14, 2010, unpub.), aff’g, 2009 WL 6813322 (Cal. Sup. May 29, 2009)
Blunt v. Medtronic, Inc., 760 N.W.2d 396 (Wis. 2009); 738 N.W.2d 143 (Wis. App. 2007)
Riegel v. Medtronic, Inc., 451 F.3d 104 (2d Cir. 2006), affirmed 552 U.S. 312 (2008)
Baker v. St. Jude Medical, S.C., Inc., 178 S.W.3d 127 (Tex. App. 2005), rev. denied (Tex. 2006), cert. denied (S. Ct. 2008)
McMullen v. Medtronic, Inc., 421 F.3d 482 (7th Cir. 2005)
Smith v. American Home Products Corp., 2004 WL 765946 (Cal. App. Apr. 12, 2004)
Hendrix v. Countrywide Home Loans, Inc., 2002 WL 1584244 (Cal. App. Jul. 17, 2002)
Brooks v. Howmedica, Inc., 273 F.3d 785 (8th Cir. 2001) (amicus brief)
Morson v. Superior Court, 90 Cal. App. 4th 775 (2001)
Clark v. Baxter Healthcare Corp., 83 Cal. App. 4th 1048 (2000)
Recognitions
- DRI Leadership Award, 2025
- Reed Smith’s Southern California Pro Bono Honor Roll, 2014
- Noted as part of The Recorder’s profile of Reed Smith as one of two finalists for the publication’s first annual Litigation Department of the Year Awards in the category of Product Liability, 2013
Credentials
Education
Education
- Loyola Law School, 1995, J.D., magna cum laude; Order of the Coif, Note and Comment Editor, Loyola of Los Angeles Law Review
- University of California, Los Angeles, 1989, B.A., English
Professional admissions & qualifications
Professional admissions & qualifications
- Florida
- California
Court admissions
Court admissions
- U.S. Supreme Court
- U.S. Court of Appeals - Fourth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals - Sixth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals - Seventh Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals - Eighth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals - Ninth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals - Tenth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals - Eleventh Circuit
- U.S. District Court - Central District of California
- U.S. District Court - Eastern District of California
- U.S. District Court - Northern District of California
- U.S. District Court - Middle District of Florida
- U.S. District Court - Southern District of Florida
- U.S. District Court - Western District of Michigan
Professional affiliations
Professional affiliations
- DRI Center for Law and Public Policy’s Amicus Committee
- Chair, 2023-2025
- Vice Chair, 2022-2023
- Member, 2022-present
- DRI’s Appellate Advocacy Committee
- Chair, 2019-2021
- Vice Chair, 2017-2019
- Program Chair, DRI’s Appellate Advocacy Conference, 2011
- Chair, California Bar’s Committee on Women in the Law, 2002-2003
Clerkships
Clerkships
- U.S. District Court - Central District of California, Honorable Margaret M. Morrow
Media mentions
Insights
Blogs
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Events
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