Hudson

Eric Hudson focuses his practice on the defense of mass tort litigation for pharmaceutical, medical device and other product manufacturers. He has extensive experience defending federal multidistrict litigation and state court consolidated litigation throughout the United States. He has served as lead counsel for manufacturers in nationwide MDLs as well as nationwide coordinating counsel in a number of mass torts. Eric also has an extensive settlement practice throughout the United States, and he has represented manufacturers in connection with mass tort settlements in Australia, Canada and Europe.  He is a Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 31 listed general civil mediator.

• Drug & Device Litigation
• Products, Catastrophic & Industrial Litigation
• Groundwater & Chemical Exposure Litigation

Pharmaceutical, Medical Device and Healthcare

In over 25 years of practice, Eric has handled every aspect of mass tort litigation, including discovery, depositions, experts, motions, trials and settlement. Based on that experience he regularly advises clients on the strategic defense and management of mass torts. Clients rely on Eric for everything from substantive defense strategy to the cost-effective administration of virtual law firms.  Apart from mass torts, Eric regularly defends high stakes, individual lawsuits involving pharmaceuticals, medical devices, general product liability and chemical products.

Eric frequently writes and speaks about product liability litigation. He is a blogging team member for the award-winning Drug & Device Law Blog, where he writes regularly about legal developments impacting the pharmaceutical and medical device industry.  He co-authored “Mass Torts in the United States,” Chapter 6 – Management of Mass Torts by the Judiciary, American Bar Association, and he frequently contributes to the Mass Torts Newsletter for the American Bar Association’s Mass Torts Committee.

Recognized by a variety of industry publications, Eric is listed in Best Lawyers in America®, Mid-South Super Lawyers and is AV®– Preeminent™ Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell. He received the Tennessee Bar Association’s Leadership Law Award (2010), and Memphis Business Journal selected him as one of its Top 40 Under 40 (2007). He is a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation, the Tennessee Bar Foundation and the Memphis Bar Foundation.

Eric previously served as Co-Chair of the Mass Torts Committee for the American Bar Association (2012-2015), Co-Chair of the Drug and Medical Device Subcommittee (2010-2012) and Co-Chair of the Toxic Torts Subcommittee (2008-2010). He received the ABA’s Outstanding Subcommittee Chair Award (2008 and 2010). He is a member of the Drug and Medical Device Committee of the Defense Research Institute (DRI). He served as President (2013) and Treasurer (2010) of the Memphis Mid-South Chapter of the Federal Bar Association.

• National Coordinating Counsel and MDL Liaison Counsel for branded pharmaceutical manufacturer in MDL proceedings in the U.S. District Court, Southern District of Illinois & coordinated state court proceedings in California, Connecticut and Delaware.
• Co-trial counsel for branded pharmaceutical manufacturer in one of the first bench trials conducted pursuant to Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp. v. Albrecht, 139 S.Ct. 1668 (U.S. 2019). Following a multi-day trial in the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri, the court held that plaintiff’s claims were preempted based on the absence of newly acquired information that would have permitted the defendant to implement a label change.
• National settlement counsel for U.S. device manufacturer in mass tort litigation. Negotiated and implemented settlements of tens of thousands of cases in the United States, as well as class action settlements in Australia and Canada.
• Lead Counsel in MDL proceedings in the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York on behalf of generic pharmaceutical manufacturer. Obtained summary judgment on all claims.
• Lead Counsel for pharmaceutical manufacturer in mass tort cases filed in Las Vegas, Nevada alleging Hepatitis C infection associated with re-use of vials of the anesthetic propofol. Obtained dismissals of more than 4,000 plaintiffs’ claims against the firm’s client.
• Summary judgment obtained for manufacturer of metalworking fluids in mass torts case involving over 200 plaintiffs with claims exceeding $100 Million in the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Michigan.
• After removal pursuant to the Class Action Fairness Act, successfully defeated remand efforts by plaintiffs in a putative class action seeking more than $50 Billion for alleged identity theft, ultimately leading to outright dismissal.
• Defense of environmental contamination cases involving CERCLA and contribution actions.

• Best Lawyers in America®
  • Product Liability Litigation – Defendants, 2022-2025
  • Commercial Litigation, 2013-2025
• Super Lawyers®
  • Mid-South Super Lawyers, Class Action / Mass Torts, 2011-2020, 2024
  • Mid-South Rising Stars, 2008-2010
• Martindale-Hubbell®
  • AV®- Preeminent™ Peer Review Rated
• Memphis Business Journal
  • Top 40 Under 40, 2007
• The Legal 500 US
  • Recognized in the editorial for nationwide Dispute Resolution: Product Liability, Mass Tort and Class Action: Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices – Defense, 2019.
• Outstanding Subcommittee Chair, Litigation Section, American Bar Association, 2008 & 2010
• Tennessee Bar Association, Leadership Law 2010
• Fellow, American Bar Foundation
• Life Sciences Star, LMG Life Sciences
• Fellow, Memphis Bar Foundation
• Fellow, Tennessee Bar Foundation
• Drug & Device Law Blog, Blogging Team Member

• Tennessee, 2003
• Vermont, 1998
• U.S. District Courts
• Wisconsin: Western
• Michigan: Eastern
• Vermont: District of Vermont
• Tennessee: Eastern, Middle, Western
• U.S. Court of Appeals
• 6th Circuit
• 7th Circuit
• 8th Circuit
• U.S. Supreme Court

• Vermont Law School, J.D., magna cum laude, 1998
  • Head Notes Editor, Vermont Law Review
  • Am Jur Awards, Civil Procedure, Intellectual Property, Appellate Advocacy
• University of South Florida, M.A., Biology, 1995
• Vanderbilt University, B.S., Biology, 1993

• American Bar Association
  • Litigation Section
    • Mass Torts Committee
      • Co-Chair, 2012-2015
    • Drug and Medical Device Subcommittee
      • Co-Chair, 2010-2012
    • Toxic Torts Subcommittee
      • Co-Chair, 2008-2010
• Defense Research Institute (DRI)
  • Drug and Medical Device Committee
• Federal Bar Association
  • Memphis Mid-South Chapter
    • President, 2013
    • Treasurer, 2010
• Tennessee Bar Association

• Author, “Eleventh Circuit Weighs In on Growing Administrative Feasibility Split,” ABA, Section of Litigation, Mass Torts Newsletter, Vol. 19, No. 4, Summer 2021.
• Co-Author, "Mass Torts in the United States," Chapter 6 - Management of Mass Torts by the Judiciary, American Bar Association, 2020.
• Co-Author, “Plaintiff Attorney Advertising: Protected or Prosecutable?” Pro Te Solutio, Vol. 8, No. 5, Spring 2016.
• Author, “Jenga for the Experts: How Much Can One Expert Rely on Another?”  ABA, Section of Litigation, Mass Torts Newsletter, Vol. 14, No. 3, Summer 2016.
• Author, "B2B Litigation Avoidance in the Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Industry," Pro Te: Solutio, Vol. 8 No. 1, March 2015.
• Author, “The FDA's Strategic Priorities for 2014-2018,” Pro Te: Solutio, Vol. 7 No. 3, September 2014.
• Author, “Mensing: Preemption or Not?" Pro Te: Solutio, Vol. 5 No. 1, 16-19, February 2012.
• Presenter and Panel Member, “Devising Novel End-Game Strategies in Bet-the-Company Litigation,” ACI’s National Advanced Forum on Managing and Resolving Mass Tort Products Liability Claims, New York, NY, October 2010.
• Panel Chair and Seminar Co-Chair, “Chemical Products and Toxic Torts: From Crisis to Mass Litigation – Starting Smart and Finishing Strong,” Houston, TX, October 2010.
• Author, “Generic Preemption after Levine,” Pro Te: Solutio, Vol. 3 No. 4, 6-9, October 2010. 
• Author, “Comment C on Toxic Torts in the Restatement Third”, ABA, Section of Litigation, Mass Torts Newsletter, Summer 2010.
• Author, “Defeating Class Certification in Complex Commercial Litigation,” Pro Te: Solutio, Vol. 2 No. 4, 14-19, October 2009. 
• Seminar Co-Chair, “Chemical Products and Toxic Torts: New Developments, Significant Trends and a View into the Future,“ ABA Section of Litigation, Products Liability and Mass Torts Committees, Exxon Mobil Corporation, Houston, TX, September 2009.
• Author, “The Potential REACH of European Union Chemical Regulations into U.S. Courts,” ABA Section of Litigation, Mass Torts Newsletter, Winter 2008.
• Author, “Consolidation: Tempering the Temptation for Judicial Economy,” ABA Section of Litigation, Trial Practice Journal, Vol. 22, No. 3, Fall 2008. 
• Panel Chair, “Class Action Certification,” ABA Section of Litigation, Chemical Products Subcommittee Meeting, Wilmington, Del., 2008.
• Presenter, “Mass Torts: Looking Back But Heading Forward,” ABA Section of Litigation, Mass Torts, Product Liability and Environmental Litigation Joint Meeting, Aspen, Colo., 2008.
• Author, “Bellwether Plaintiffs – Overview, Strategy and Implications,” ABA Section of Litigation, Mass Torts Newsletter, Winter 2007. 
• Presenter, “Developments in Mass Torts Law,” ABA Section of Litigation, Mid-Year Meeting, San Antonio, Texas 2007. 
• Author, “Beyond the HazCom Standard in Failure to Warn Claims,” Defense Research Institute, For the Defense, April 2007. 
• Author, “Joint Defense Agreements – Practical and Ethical Considerations”, Defense Research Institute, For the Defense, February 2007.
• Presenter, “Civility and Professionalism in a Young Lawyer’s Practice,” Defense Research Institute, Annual Meeting, Washington, D.C., 2007.
• Presenter, “Civility and Professionalism,” CLE, Memphis Bar Association, 2007.
• Author, “Damages and Burden Shifting in Trademark and Copyright Cases,” Defending Intellectual Property Cases, Defense Research Institute, 2006. 

• Nuber YMCA
  • Volunteer of the Year, 2014
  • Annual Campaign Co-Chair, 2013 and 2014
  • Board of Directors
• Memphis Area Legal Services
  • Pro Bono Volunteer