Catastrophic Injury & Loss Defense
National Catastrophic Injury and Loss Defense Department
Lydecker partners Lee Patten, Mark Hendricks, and Eric McAliley head the Firm’s National Catastrophic Injury and Loss Defense Department. Our National Catastrophic Injury and Loss Defense Department represents clients facing high-stakes litigation involving severe and life-altering injuries, such as wrongful death, paralysis, amputations, sexual assault, and other serious injuries. These claims can result from a multitude of alleged causes, including construction site accidents and collapses, road construction accidents, commercial trucking and car accidents, premises liability, negligent security, and products liability, to name a few. Our experienced attorneys possess a deep understanding of the complex medical, legal, and financial issues associated with catastrophic injury cases and the industries from which these claims arise.
Expertise and Approach: Our team is adept at handling cases involving a wide range of catastrophic injuries, including but not limited to wrongful death, paralysis, traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, severe burns, amputations, and other debilitating conditions. We understand that these cases require a meticulous approach, combining legal acumen with medical knowledge to effectively challenge the claims and protect our clients’ interests. Our attorneys vigorously defend the main claim, while always fully exploring the possibility of risk transfer. This is especially important due to the possible verdict ranges of these matters.
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Catastrophic Injury & Loss Defense Team
Jane M. Braugh is a partner in Lydecker’s Los Angeles office and received her B.A. in English from the University of Kentucky. She attended law school at the University of Houston, Law Center in Houston, Texas. During law school, Jane M. Braugh studied abroad in Innsbruck Austria and Mexico City, Mexico, where she completed a law internship at Petróleos Mexicanos (PEMEX), Mexico’s state-owned petroleum company.
After obtaining her juris doctorate degree, Jane M. Braugh was appointed Assistant Attorney General for the State of Texas in the Financial Crimes Division, and practiced in Austin, Texas from May 1995 through December 1999. While an Assistant Attorney General, Jane M. Braugh took her first jury trial to verdict obtaining a judgment for the State of Texas against a nightclub owner in Fort Worth. Ms. Braugh co-authored the Texas County and District Attorney’s Practice Guide on Asset Seizure and Forfeiture, drafted proposed legislation and testified before Legislative committees regarding pending legislation.
Jane M. Braugh then transferred her practice to Southern California in January 2000 where her practice focused on a variety of complex litigation matters involving catastrophic injury, wrongful death, product liability, premises liability, vehicular and trucking accidents, aircraft accidents, workplace accidents, labor and employment claims, and a variety of business and commercial disputes. Included in her practice is the participation in the complex courtrooms of Los Angeles County Superior Court, Judicial Council Coordination Proceedings (JCCP) for products liability cases involving auto and tire manufacturers. Such complex coordinated matters included those filed in, In Re Firestone Tires (including a jury trial to judgment in Ramon Moreno Sr., et al. v. ATV, Inc.) and In Re Winston Tires. Jane M. Braugh was part of the trial team that obtained a judgment after jury trial in the products liability case of Mendoza v. Ford Motor Co., in Kern County Superior Court.
Jane M. Braugh is a member of the State Bar of Texas and the State Bar of California. She is admitted to practice before the United States District Courts for the Northern, and Western Districts of Texas, as well as the Central District of California. Jane M. Braugh is admitted to practice before the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
Jane M. Braugh, a Native American, is also a member of the judiciary. In 2004, Jane M. Braugh was elected District Court Judge of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation (CPN) of which she is a tribal member, where she served until 2010. On June 26, 2010, Jane M. Braugh was elected Associate Supreme Court Justice of the CPN Supreme Court where she remains serving for multiple consecutive terms.
Samantha Brown is an Associate in the firm’s Boca Raton office. Ms. Brown’s practice involves Catastrophic Injury & Loss Defense, Complex Commercial Litigation, Professional Liability, Municipal Defense, Environmental / Toxic Tort, Premises Liability, Products Liability, and Transportation Liability.
Ms. Brown earned her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice, a minor in Legal Studies, and a Certification in Criminal Profiling and Intelligence and National Security from the University of Central Florida in May 2020.
Ms. Brown earned her Juris Doctorate Degree from Nova Southeastern University Shepard Broad College of Law, graduating Magna Cum Laude. Upon graduation, Ms. Brown was inducted into the Order of Barristers, a national honor society. During law school, Ms. Brown was part of the honor program and received the Dean’s List award every semester. Ms. Brown served as NSU’s Trial Association’s Vice President of External Operations. She was a national competitor for the NSU Trial Team and NSU’s Moot Court Honor Society. Ms. Brown was a Senior Associate of Nova Law Review and a teaching assistant for criminal law and criminal procedure classes. Ms. Brown was President of NSU’s Federalist Chapter and National Security Society.
Before joining the firm, Ms. Brown was a Judicial intern for the Honorable Judge Weekes. Ms. Brown previously worked at a large defense firm practicing vehicular negligence.
Ms. Franks is a partner in the firm’s Miami office, where she defends local, national, and international organizations, as well as individuals, and tries catastrophic personal injury actions, premises liability matters, professional liability claims, construction defect matters, and medical/substance abuse treatment malpractice claims throughout the State of Florida.
Ms. Franks is originally from Pennsylvania and moved to South Florida in 2002 to study journalism and political science. Prior to pursuing her law degree, Ms. Franks taught as an adjunct professor at the University of Miami in the Department of Political Science for five years. Her classes included Intro to American National Government, the Legislative Process, and Congressional Representation. Ms. Franks earned her Juris Doctor from the University of Miami School of Law in 2011.
Ms. Franks has considerable experience dealing with automobile negligence, professional malpractice, medical malpractice, and premises liability matters involving catastrophic injuries, wrongful death, and extra contractual exposure, including a focus on evidentiary issues, dispositive motion practice, complex liability claims, and damages mitigation.
Ms. Franks earned a Bachelor of Science in Communication from the University of Miami in 2004. She graduated cum laude with a double-major in journalism and political science. Ms. Franks went on to complete a Master’s degree in Communication at the University of Miami in 2005, also graduating cum laude.
Ms. Franks earned her Juris Doctor from the University of Miami School of Law in 2011. At the University of Miami School of Law, Ms. Franks was the recipient of the Hugh L. Wood Scholarship, Outstanding Merit Scholarship, and the Ehrich Scholarship. Ms. Franks served as a research assistant to multiple highly regarded University of Miami School of Law professors in the areas of environmental litigation and legislation, the first amendment, and communication regulation.
Michael Goldman is a Partner at the firm’s New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania offices. His practice focuses in the area of employment law. Michael represents employers across a multitude of industries in litigation related to employment discrimination claims, wage and hour claims, and restrictive covenants. He also counsels clients on best practices.
Michael has extensive civil litigation experience and handles cases from inception through trial. He regularly appears in federal and state courts, as well as in administrative law and dispute resolution forums. Prior to joining the firm, Michael practiced as an associate at a prominent New Jersey firm, concentrating his practice in defense litigation on behalf of private and public entities, with an emphasis on tort liability, labor and employment law, and civil rights defense. He also represented clients in the areas of wage and hour claims, commercial litigation, construction law, and education law. Earlier in his career, Michael was an associate at a well-known litigation boutique where he focused his practice on representing public entities in matters involving tort liability, labor and employment law, and civil rights defense. Michael has been selected to the New Jersey Super Lawyers Rising Star list from 2019-2023.
Mr. Hendricks is the Managing Partner for Lydecker LLP. He practices out of the firm’s Miami and Boca Raton offices where he maintains an active trial and civil litigation practice in the Federal, State, and Appellate Courts throughout the State of Florida. Mr. Hendricks’ areas of practice include general civil litigation and trial practice, commercial litigation, professional liability/malpractice defense, insurance/tort liability defense, and labor and employment. He also serves as lead trial counsel for the firm’s clients and carriers and oversees the firm’s trial teams. He has over 25 years of experience representing clients and has successfully defended clients against multi-million dollar cases as lead trial counsel. He is often called upon to assist clients and carriers on high exposure and large loss claims in his capacity as monitoring counsel or co-counsel.
Upon graduating with Honors from the University of Miami School of Law, Mr. Hendricks began practicing as an associate Greenberg, Traurig, in the environmental litigation and land use department. Looking to further his litigation experience he accepted a position as a practiced commercial litigation associate with Kimbrell & Hamann. In 1990, Mr. Hendricks relocated to Palm Beach County where he spent several years practicing insurance defense and commercial litigation at Walton Lantoff. He subsequently joined the firm of Carman, Beauchamp and Sang as a senior associate and trial attorney. From 1999 thru 2007, Mr. Hendricks was employed as a partner at Panza, Maurer, Maynard & Noel where he served as a senior litigation partner and lead trial attorney for many of the firm’s corporate, institutional and governmental clients.
In law school, Mr. Hendricks was the winner of the University of Miami Law School’s Mock Trial Competition and member of the National Trial Competition Team. He also served as a member of the Inter-American Law Review, member of the Society of Bar & Gavel, Society of Wig and Robe, and was inducted into the school’s Moot Court Board.
Mr. Hendricks’ representative clients include private and public educational institutions, environmental, pollution and toxic tort defense, prison liability, prison healthcare and liability, public and private corporations, municipal governments, state agencies and political subdivisions, insurance companies and self-insured entities. Mr. Hendricks’ trial experience includes Federal, state and appellate proceedings including public procurements and bid protests.
Meliz Martin is a Partner in the firm’s Miami office. Ms. Martin represents developers, general contractors, subcontractors, design professionals, and insurance carriers in a variety of contexts arising from the construction and use of real property. These representations include construction and design defect disputes, construction transactions, construction contract/payment disputes, environmental claims, and construction accident claims involving catastrophic injuries. Her practice involves disputes arising from water intrusion through building exteriors; structural integrity; mechanical, electrical, plumbing, fire suppression system performance issues; inadequate site drainage; and exterior coating and cladding failures.
A large portion of her practice involves construction and design defect disputes, including representation of clients during the Chapter 558 pre-suit process, litigation and arbitration. Ms. Martin’s practice involves all aspects of federal and state trial litigation. She has taken hundreds of depositions and has attended hundreds of hearings. She obtained favorable results in the vast majority of these matters.
Ms. Martin’s litigation philosophy involves having an eye towards detail, this is especially true in design and construction litigation, as these claims have multiple parties and voluminous multiyear records for the life span of a construction project. Equally important is a focus on plaintiffs’ claims, which typically involve tens of hundreds of defect items. Understanding these complex facts and issues facilitates opportunities for risk transfer and early resolution of matters.
Prior to joining the firm, Ms. Martin was practicing in the areas of condominium and homeowners association, construction and real estate litigation.
Eric McAliley brings more than two decades of legal experience to his representation of professionals in E&O claims and of clients with respect to high exposure personal injury and CGL claims. He draws on his education in accounting/tax, and unique prior career experience in engineering with Pratt & Whitney and the South Florida Water Management District to bring added value to his practice.
Eric defends cases on behalf of clients involving E&O Claims including, legal malpractice, negligence, fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, and other common law and statutory claims. Eric represents attorneys, financial professionals, including securities brokers-dealers, accountants, retail and wholesale brokers and insurance agents.
Eric’s CGL practice consists of defending claims involving physical and emotional injuries including, but not limited to, automobile negligence, negligent security, premises liability, 1983 claims, and intentional torts. With respect to claims against governmental entities, Eric regularly handles cases involving complex issues of constitutional law, sovereign immunity, civil rights, torts, and common law claims.
Eric also serves as trial counsel for the firm’s clients and carriers and assists with the firm’s trial teams.
Brian is Litigation Partner in Lydecker’s San Diego office with more than twenty years of success providing legal analysis, strategy and endeavors to look at all options for purposes of protecting clients. Brian represents parties from incept to trial in proceeding, including alternative dispute resolution.
Brian balances attention to detail and management methodologies to maintain a ‘big picture’ focus while minimizing client /company exposure to risk. He develops working relationships with all counsel in all litigation matter to ensure organization, steer the litigation towards the best resolution, and leverages these relationships to control client expenses.
Brian maintains a strong courtroom presence and drives case strategies to achieve favorable outcomes for individual and corporate clients through the application of critical thinking and outside the box.
Mr. Murphy’s practice involves all aspects of federal and state civil trial litigation with a primary focus on product liability, premises liability, personal injury, and government liability. In his professional career, Brian has successfully represented corporate clients, private individuals, and government clients in all phases of litigation. His representation includes manufacturers, distributors, suppliers, and major retailers in numerous areas within the field, such as mass and toxic tort litigation, product defect claims, as well as defending claims involving consumer and commercially available chemicals, substances, and materials.
Over the course of nearly 20 years, Mr. Murphy has represented a diverse range of clients, including large and small businesses in the biotech, chemical, communications, construction, education, entertainment, healthcare, hospitality, insurance, law enforcement, manufacturing, pest control, private post-secondary school, retail, and transportation industries.
Mr. Murphy also has extensive experience defending municipalities (defending government entities and their employees and school districts) and employers. He is admitted to practice in California.He is admitted to practice in all California district Courts, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, U.S. District Court, Central District of California, U.S. District Court, Southern District of California, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of California.
He earned his law degree from University of San Diego School of Law and his undergraduate degree from University of California, Riverside.
Robert Pariser supervises a talented team of attorneys who practice in the New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania offices. The attorneys I collaborate with are comprised of former educators, prosecutors, law clerks to state and federal judges and insurance professionals.
Robert Pariser’s legal practice focuses on the defense of claims against professionals (E&O, A&B, LPL or MPL), directors and officers (D&O) and against employers (EPL). Mr. Pariser represents design professionals (A&E) and other real estate professionals, including managing agents, appraisers, title agents, condo and co-op boards and developers in various disputes. On behalf of construction owners and managers, he defends claims prosecuted by injured workers brought pursuant to the New York Labor Law.
Robert Pariser also represent clients on other types of discrimination claims, including alleged civil rights violations, including the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Robert Pariser defends environmental cases, involving mold, asbestos and ground contamination.
Robert Pariser represents public and private educators in breach of contract, employment, bullying, failing to promote and in due process matters.
Robert Pariser has had election, stock redemption, auction, foreclosure/ sheriff sale, false arrest, prosecutorial misconduct disputes. Robert Pariser has been on the New York Metro Super Lawyers list from 2011-present.
Mr. Patten is a Partner at Lydecker’s New York and New Jersey offices. He serves in the commercial litigation department where he works on third party insurance defense, including General Liability Defense, Bodily Injury Defense, New York Labor Law Defense, Construction Defect Litigation, Architects & Engineers litigation, Products Liability, and a variety of other civil litigation issues. Mr. Patten has litigated countless cases involving wrongful death and catastrophic accidents/injuries at construction sites, including claims brought under New York Labor Laws section 200, 240, and 241.
In addition, Mr. Patten is an expert in automobile negligence defense. He has been working in the auto negligence industry for the majority of his career and manages complex cases involving multi-vehicle accidents and catastrophic injuries or wrongful death. Mr. Patten provides legal guidance on issues involving vicarious liability, indemnity, as well as non-permissive use. He has experience in both trial and arbitration settings, reaching final judgments, verdicts, and beneficial settlements for his auto negligence clients.
Prior to joining Lydecker, Mr. Patten was a prosecutor for the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office where he obtained extensive trial experience prosecuting criminal misdemeanor and felony level charges. Mr. Patten also prosecuted for the State of Florida Department of Children and Families, where he litigated dependency issues and termination of parental rights cases.
Mr. Patten received his Juris Doctor from St. Thomas University School of Law, where he graduated Magna Cum Laude in the top 3% of his class. He obtained his Bachelor of Arts in History, Cum Laude, from St. John’s University in Minnesota.
While in law school, Mr. Patten served as Editor-in-Chief for the St. Thomas Law Review, as well as Student Bar Association President. Mr. Patten also tutored students in property law and worked as an intern for the Honorable Judge John O’Sullivan in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
Brittany Singletary is Of Counsel in the firm’s Miami office. Her practice is concentrated in the areas of personal injury, wrongful death, premises liability, and vehicle negligence.
Ms. Singletary is a Miami native. After graduating from the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme at Coral Reef Senior High School, she received her Bachelor of Business Administration from Florida International University. She went on to earn her Juris Doctorate from the University of Miami School of Law. Throughout law school, she clerked at a local prominent civil trial firm, and also served as a Fellow at the Children and Youth Law Clinic, where she represented children in foster care and former foster youth in dependency, health care, disability, immigration, and other legal matters. She also clerked at Legal Services of Greater Miami, where she represented low-income tenants to help them avoid homelessness and preserve their housing. Prior to joining Lydecker, Ms. Singletary practiced at a large Florida corporate insurance defense firm in the areas of wrongful death, premises liability, security negligence, condominium and homeowners’ association law, construction litigation, vehicle negligence, and trucking accident defense.
Ryan Stocks is an Associate in Lydecker’s Miami office. His practice involves civil litigation, with a primary focus on environmental law.
Ryan received his B.B.A. in economics and international business as well as a minor in environmental economics and management from the University of Georgia in 2021. He then received his J.D. and certificate in Environmental, Natural Resources, and Land Use Law at Florida State University College of Law in 2024. While in law school, Ryan held several executive board positions, including vice president, in the Environmental Law Society and Phi Alpha Delta Law Fraternity.
Prior to joining Lydecker, Ryan worked as legal intern at the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and as a law clerk at a boutique law firm specializing in environmental law. He also previously interned at two other law firms, where he gained experience in residential real estate and personal injury law.
J.W. Webb is a Litigation Partner in the firm’s Orlando office, where he maintains an active trial and civil litigation practice in Federal and State Courts throughout Florida.
Mr. Webb has considerable experience dealing with automobile negligence, arson, medical malpractice, premise liability and product liability cases resulting in catastrophic injuries and wrongful death. Mr. Webb has also handled cases dealing with bad faith, commercial transaction disputes, construction defects, declaratory actions, land disputes and property damage. He has successfully tried cases in Brevard, Broward, Marion, Orange, Palm Beach, Seminole, and Volusia Counties.
Mr. Webb began his legal career with Hightower and Rudd, P.A. a Miami based insurance defense firm. Shortly after joining the firm, Mr. Webb became the managing attorney of its West Palm Beach office.
After two years in practice, Mr. Webb was invited to join Kubicki Draper, P.A. a State-wide insurance defense firm, where he became a shareholder and was chosen by the firm’s managing partner to start its Orlando Office, which he ran for six years before opening his own law firm.
Mr. Webb has given lectures throughout the country on many subjects during his career. He lectures to insurance carriers on issues ranging from hospital liens and personal injury protection to complicated medial claims and high exposure cases.
Mr. Webb is licensed to practice law in all Florida State Courts and the . He has also served as a Guardian ad Litem for children in the Central Florida area.
Mr. Webb graduated from Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas in 1989 with a B.A. in business and a concentration in economics. Before going to law school Mr. Webb worked in the business world for a number of years managing companies in Texas, California, Illinois, and Florida.
Mr. Webb returned to his home state of Michigan to obtain his Juris Doctorate – Cum Laude, from Michigan State University. While attending law school, Mr. Webb served as Managing Editor of Business and Production for the Michigan State Law Review, as an intern for United States Federal District Judge Gerald E. Rose, and as a law clerk for the Department of Justice: United States Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Michigan. During his tenure with the Department of Justice, under the internship section of the program, Mr. Webb functioned as lead counsel for the prosecution and trial of numerous misdemeanor cases.
As a trial attorney for Lydecker’s Environmental Mass Tort, Product Liability Department and General Liability Department, Ronn has tried in excess of sixty (60) jury trials as lead trial counsel with an outstanding record of success.
Ronn had been practicing for less than four years when he tried his first jury trial which involved a collision between an automobile and a 12 year old cyclist with claims of traumatically induced epilepsy. Through a detailed cross-examination of the plaintiff, Ronn was able to prove that she had ridden her bicycle outside of the crosswalk in an attempt to beat the signal light. The jury returned a verdict of less than $14,000 after plaintiff’s counsel demanded $350,000.
Ronn was also retained by a major grocery store chain headquartered in Southern California to defend them and their truck driver whose tractor trailer rig collided with a cherry picker lift occupied by a worker who was replacing traffic signs. The worker fell almost 20 feet and suffered several facial and skull fractures. After a six and one half week trial, plaintiff’s counsel requested a verdict of $1,000,000. The jury returned a verdict for $1,000 less than the pre-trial offer made by Ronn’s client.
Ronn was admitted pro hac vice in the State of Arizona to defend a major supplier to the world’s larger fast food restaurant and successfully defended his client against claims of wrongful termination and racial discrimination.
While working in the City Attorney’s office of a major public entity, Ronn was re-assigned to an adverse liability major injury case six weeks prior to trial. Plaintiff alleged the defendant’s law enforcement vehicle ran a red light, violating his right of way. He suffered severe neck and back injuries with past surgeries to both his neck and back, with allegations of future back surgery being necessary. Plaintiff’s counsel demanded $15,000,000 after a four week jury trial. Although the jury found no negligence on the part of the plaintiff, they only awarded him slightly more than the defendant’s $1,000,000 pre-trial offer.
Most recently, Ronn obtained a 12-0 defense jury verdict in a breach of warranty of habitability case.
