Matt Holian

Representative of his experience are the following cases:

• In re Depo-Provera Products Liability Litigation, MDL 3140 (N.D. Fla.): Served as co-national counsel for Pfizer in MDL and state court litigation involving claims that Depo-Provera causes meningioma
• In re Zantac (Ranitidine) Products Liability Litigation, MDL 2924 (S.D. Fla.): Served as co-national counsel for Sanofi in MDL and state court litigation involving thousands of cancer claims and third-party payor, medical monitoring, and consumer fraud class actions; obtained exclusion of plaintiffs' experts' testimony on general causation, the largest Daubert victory for the defense in history (measured by the number of plaintiffs dismissed) (2022 WL 17480906 (S.D. Fla. Dec. 6, 2022))
• In re Aqueous Film-Forming Foams Products Liability Litigation, MDL 2873 (D.S.C.): Served as national counsel for BASF Corporation in actions involving claims of environmental contamination, medical monitoring, and personal injury from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) allegedly due to fire-fighting foam
• In re Chantix (Varenicline) Marketing, Sales Practices, & Products Liability Litigation (II), MDL 3050 (S.D.N.Y.): Served as co-national counsel for Pfizer in litigation seeking refunds of purchase of Chantix due to alleged nitrosamine contamination
• In re Viagra (Sildenafil Citrate) and Cialis (Tadalafil) Products Liability Litigation, MDL 2691 (N.D. Cal.): Co-national counsel for Pfizer in product liability litigation alleging that Viagra and other phosphodiesterase-5 (PDE5) inhibitors cause melanoma; obtained exclusion of plaintiffs' experts' testimony on general causation, resulting in summary judgment on all claims for defendants (424 F. Supp. 3d 781 (N.D. Cal. 2020))
• In re Eliquis Products Liability Litigation, MDL 2754 (S.D.N.Y.): National counsel for Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. and Pfizer in product liability litigation alleging that Eliquis causes bleeding, in which the AKD Partners team obtained landmark rulings finding that plaintiffs' claims were preempted at the pleading stage (Utts v. Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., 226 F. Supp. 3d 166, 177 (S.D.N.Y. 2016) ("Utts I"); Utts v. Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., 251 F. Supp. 3d 644, 658 (S.D.N.Y. 2017) ("Utts II")). The MDL decisions were affirmed on appeal (Gibbons v. Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., No. 17-2638, 2d Cir. Mar. 26, 2019), a ruling the Drug & Device Law Blog called "the TwIqbal decision to end all TwIqbal decisions" in the preemption context and noted, "If anyone wonders why we consider preemption our side's most powerful defense, Gibbons is Exhibit A."
• In re Proton Pump Inhibitor Products Liability Litigation, MDL 2789 (D.N.J.): National counsel for Pfizer and Wyeth in product liability litigation alleging that proton pump inhibitors Protonix and Nexium 24HR (OTC) cause chronic kidney disease and other kidney injuries
• Talc Product Liability Litigation: National counsel for BASF Catalysts LLC in nationwide litigation involving personal injuries allegedly caused by talc
• Tecfidera Litigation: Counsel for Biogen in personal injury suits involving multiple sclerosis (MS) medication
• In re Testosterone Replacement Therapy Products Liability Litigation, MDL 2545 (N.D. Ill.): National counsel for Pfizer and Pharmacia & Upjohn in product liability litigation involving testosterone replacement therapies; obtained orders dismissing all claims against clients, including failure-to-warn and design claims on basis of impossibility preemption, which were affirmed by Seventh Circuit (Guilbeau v. Pfizer Inc., 2018 WL 476343 (7th Cir. Jan. 19, 2018))
• In re Chantix (Varenicline) Products Liability Litigation, MDL 2092 (N.D. Ala.): Appointed by MDL court as Defendants' Liaison Counsel in product liability litigation involving Chantix, an aid to smoking cessation treatment; obtained ruling that label was adequate as a matter of law (In re Chantix (Varenicline) Prods. Liab. Litig., 881 F. Supp. 2d 1333 (N.D. Ala. 2012))
• Pepe v. Genzyme Corporation et al. (D. Mass.): Represented Genzyme in putative class action relating to DNA testing services
• In re Prempro Products Liability Litigation, 738 F. Supp. 2d 887 (E.D. Ark. 2010): Obtained ruling excluding plaintiffs' experts' opinion that estrogen-only hormone therapy causes breast cancer
• In re Bextra and Celebrex Marketing, Sales Practices and Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 1699 (N.D. Cal.): Defended Pfizer in product liability and consumer fraud litigation involving selective COX-2 inhibitors; obtained exclusion of any expert opinions that Celebrex causes heart attacks and strokes at the most commonly prescribed dose (524 F.Supp. 2d 1166 (N.D. Cal. 2007)), which CNN Money called "one of the most important 'gatekeeping' rulings ever rendered in a mass-tort case"; oversaw resolution program for thousands of cases
• Represented Pfizer in securities class action involving disclosures related to cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitors
• Baycol Litigation: Defended Bayer in product liability litigation involving Baycol, a prescription cholesterol-lowering medication; served on six trial teams in three states
• Buckingham v. Bayer Corporation (San Diego Superior Court): Obtained dismissal with prejudice of putative consumer fraud litigation against Bayer involving Aleve on preemption grounds
• Defended a clinical research organization in suits alleging breach of contract, conversion and trade secret misappropriation.
• Represented students with special needs in proceedings against school districts relating to Individualized Education Programs, with a focus on children with autism spectrum disorder

Chambers USA

• Band 4, Nationwide Product Liability & Mass Torts, (2020 – 2025) 
• Band 5, Nationwide Product Liability & Mass Torts, (2017 – 2019) 
• Up and Coming, Nationwide Product Liability & Mass Torts, (2015 – 2016) 

The Legal 500 United States

• Leading Partner, Product Liability, Mass Tort and Class Action: Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices – Defense, (2022 – 2025)
• Recommended, Healthcare: Life Sciences, (2017 – 2024) 
• Recommended, Product Liability, Mass Tort and Class Action: Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices – Defense, (2018 – 2019, 2021) 
• Recommended, Product Liability, Mass Tort and Class Actions: Toxic Tort – Defense, (2017 – 2019, 2024) 
• Next Generation Partner, Product Liability, Mass Tort and Class Action: Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices – Defense, (2017) 

Additional Recognitions

• Client Service All-Star, BTI Consulting Group, (2022)
• Selected for inclusion in Who's Who Legal: Life Sciences for Product Liability, (2018 – present)

• Co-author, "Overly Broad PFAS Regulations Bring Costs for Companies," Law360, August 19, 2022
• Co-author, "Big Data, Social Media Trigger More Life Sciences Mass Torts," Law360, December 9, 2019
• Co-author, "Massachusetts Supreme Court recognizes brand-name pharmaceutical makers owe duty to consumers of generic medications," AKD Partners Litigation Alert, March 19, 2018
• Co-author, "How To Navigate Pharma Collaboration and Licensing Agreements," Life Science Leader (LSL), February 1, 2017
• Co-author, "Mitigating Litigation Risk: Steps Every Small Biotech Company Should Consider," Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News, October 3, 2016
• Co-author, "The writing's on the wall: wise pharma companies will heed FDA warning in new draft guidance on data integrity cGMPs," AKD Partners Client Alert, May 2, 2016
• Co-author, "A Modified Approach to Random Selection of Bellwether Cases," BNA Product Safety & Liability Reporter, July 6, 2015
• Co-author, "Random Selection Is Best for MDL Bellwether Trials," Law360, October 21, 2014
• Co-author, "Bellwether Trial Selection In Multi-District Litigation: Empirical Evidence In Favor of Random Selection," 47 AKRON L. REV. 663, (2014)
• Co-author, "Clinical Trial Data Sharing and its Potential Litigation Impact,"InsideCounsel, September 23, 2014
• Co-author, "Bellwether Trial Selection in Multi-District Litigation: Empirical Evidence in Favor of Random Selection," AKD Partners Litigation Alert, September 9, 2014

• "Latest Developments on the Status of Preemption Law: Emerging Theories, Express Preemption, and Innovator Liability," ACI: Drug & Medical Device Litigation, December 2017
• "Clinical Trials 101: From Phase 1 to Phase 4 in 60 Minutes," Client Continuing Legal Education (CLE), March 2016
• "Preemption Developments in Pharmaceutical Litigation," Client CLE, December 2015
• "Interpreting Clinical Trial Data: What In-House Lawyers Need to Know," Client CLE, July 2015
• "Attorney-Client Privilege and Work Product Protection in the U.S. & Abroad: Best Practices for Navigating Different Rules Around the World," Client CLE, January 2015

Matt has taught, co-taught or prepared lectures on the following topics for courses at Harvard Law School and Yale Law School.

• The regulatory system governing pharmaceutical, biotech and medical device companies
• How to litigate complex multi-jurisdictional product liability suits, including the coordination of these cases with related litigation such as government investigations, securities litigation, trade secret litigation and putative class actions
• The use of scientific data and other expert evidence in complex litigation
• The selection of plaintiffs for bellwether trials in mass torts
• The resolution of mass torts
• The role of lawyers as strategic advisors