Archive: June 2022

Napoli Bern Ripka Shkolnik LLP

In re: World Trade Center Disaster Site Litigation, 21 MC 100 (AKH), United States District Court, Southern District of New York. Appointed Plaintiffs’ Liaison Counsel.  Napoli negotiated a historic settlement of more than ten thousand workers’ claims against the City of New York, its contractors and other defendants in the mass tort litigation where first responders, construction workers, and laborers became ill as a result of toxic exposures suffered during the debris removal and clean-up operations at the World Trade Center and related sites following the September 11, 2001 attacks.

In re: MTBE (Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether) Products Liability Litigation, MDL 1358, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. Napoli attained more than $50 million in the settlement with ExxonMobil Corporation and other defendants on behalf of numerous municipalities and municipal water districts whose potable drinking water sources were endangered and contaminated by leaks of petroleum additive.

In Re: Nassau County Consolidated MTBE (Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether) Products Liability Litigation, Master Docket No.: 601516/09

Theodore Garille, Exec. Dir. for the Pascoag Util. Dist. v. Exxon Mobil Corp., et al. Providence Superior Ct., Case No. 02-2437 (Janice St. Ours v. Exxon Mobil Corp., et al. Providence Superior Ct., Case No. PC03-0079);

Gladys Marshall, et al., v. CSX Transportation, Inc., et al.;

In re: Diet Drug (Phentermine, fenfluramine, dexfenfluramine) Products Liability Litigation, United States District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Achieved a half-billion-dollar settlement on behalf of thousands of plaintiffs injured as a result of their ingestion of defective diet medications.

$52 Million Dollar Settlement for Environmental Contamination of Municipal Water Supplies of MTBE By Petroleum Refiners and Retailers

$875 Million Dollar Settlement on Behalf of Users of a Pharmaceutical That Caused Heart Defects

$118 Million Dollar Settlement on Behalf of Users of a Pharmaceutical that Caused Heart Defects

$220 Million Dollar Settlement on Behalf of Users of a Pharmaceutical that Caused Heart Defects

$712.5 Million Dollar Settlement of Injuries Sustained by Rescue and Recovery Workers at Ground Zero from Toxic Dust.

$24.5 Million Dollar Settlement of Injuries Sustained by Rescue and Recovery Workers at Ground Zero from Toxic Dust at Fresh Kills Landfill

$28 Million Dollar Settlement of Injuries Sustained by Rescue and Recovery Workers at Ground Zero from Toxic Dust While Working on the Barges and Piers

$47.5 Million Dollar Settlement of Injuries Sustained by Rescue and Recovery Workers at Ground Zero from Toxic Dust Recovered from The Port Authority Of New York and New Jersey

Litigation Combats Hazards of Aqueous Film-Forming Foam Products, American Water Works Association (AWWA) Opflow Magazine (August 2019)

PFAS: A New Frontier for Waste Management and Landfill Leachate, New York State Association for Solid Waste Management (NYSASWM) (Volume 24 | Number 2 | Summer 2019)

Litigation Combats Hazards of Aqueous Film-Forming Foam Products, American Water Works Association (AWWA) Opflow Magazine (August 2019)

PFAS and Their Implications for Landfills

Talk of the Towns & Topics Vo. 33 No. 3 May/June 2019

NYSASWM Newsletter (March 1, 2019)

Statute of Limitations in Toxic Tort Cases: CPLR 214-f and Beyond, Paul Napoli and Michelle Greene, New York Law Journal (January 9, 2019)

September 11th, the Zadroga Act and World Trade Center Health Program, China Press (September 11, 2018)
*This article is in Mandarin-Chinese.

Opioid Crisis Costs: Is There a Cause of Action?, The New York Law Journal (November 16, 2017)

The Emerging Crisis of PFAS Exposure, The New York Law Journal (October 6, 2017)

“The Cost of Contamination,” American Water Works Association Journal, What’s New in Water and Waste Water, November 2012

Compensation through legislation for 9/11 responders and victims: An analysis of Zadroga (Co-Author Brian Crosby), Westlaw Journal – Toxic Torts, Volume 29, Issue 8 / June 2011

“Physician Liability In Diet Drug Litigation,” New York Law Journal (April 20, 1998)

Profiled in:

Mundy, Alicia, Dispensing with the Truth: The Victims, The Drug Companies, and the Dramatic Story Behind the Battle Over Fen-Phen, St. Martin’s Press, 2001.

Depalma, Anthony, CITY OF DUST: ILLNESS, ARROGANCE AND 9/11, FT Press, 2010

Plaintiffs’ Co-Lead Counsel in In Re: Aqueous Film-Forming Foams Products Liability Litigation (MDL No. 2:18-mn-2873-RMG) by United States District Court Judge Richard Mark Gergel for the District of South Carolina, Charleston Division

Plaintiffs’ Liaison Counsel in the West Virginia Opioid Litigation (Civil Action No. 17-C-248) by Honorable David W. Hummel, Jr. of the Second Judicial Circuit Court, Division 2 of Marshall County, West Virginia

Liaison Counsel in the Colorado PFOA / PFOS Toxic Tort Litigation (Bell, et al. v. The 3M Company, et al., No. 1:16-cv-02351-RBJ) by Honorable R. Brooke Jackson of the United States District Court for the District of Colorado.

Co-Lead Counsel in the New York Opioid Cost Recovery Litigation by Justice Jerry Garguilo of the Supreme Court of the State of New York for Suffolk County

Appointed by the Supreme Court of the State of New York as a Liaison Counsel for the New York State Consolidated Diet Drug litigations In re: Diet Drug (Phentermine, fenfluramine, dexfenfluramine) Products Liability Litigation

Plaintiffs’ Discovery Committee for In re: MTBE (Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether) Products Liability Litigation (MDL-1358), United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (Judge Shira Scheindlin) on Environmental Contamination of Municipal Water Supplies of MTBE by Petroleum Refiners and Retailers

New York Court Appointed Member of the Plaintiff’s Steering Committee for In re Rezulin Products Liability Litigation (removed from the US market 3/21/2000)

Plaintiff’s Co-Liaison Counsel for In re: World Trade Center Disaster Site Litigation, 21 MC 100 (AKH) settled in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York by Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein

Purdue’s Sacklers Shifted $1B Amid Opioid Fight, NY AG Says, Law360 (September 13, 2019)

More than 100 firefighting foam cases combined in complex litigation, ChemicalWatch Global Risk & Regulation News (August 15, 2019)

Purdue’s Sackler Family Must Face Opioid Suits in New York, Bloomberg (June 24, 2019)

NY Judge Allows Opioid Claims to Go Forward Against Sacklers, New York Law Journal (June 24, 2019)

Sacklers Can’t Escape NY Opioid MDL, Law360 (June 24, 2019)

NY Counties Join Battle Over 911 Fees Against Telecoms, Law360 (May 2, 2019)

Maine cities’ lawsuits against opioid makers moved to federal courts in Ohio, Bangor Daily News (December 24, 2018)

Five more counties file lawsuits against pharmaceutical companies for opioid epidemic, West Virginia Record (December 17, 2018)

Tucson, Marana file suit over contaminated water supply, NBC News 4 Tucson (November 8, 2018)

Ohio city seeks damages from 3M, others over alleged water well contamination, Legal NewsLine (October 12, 2018)

City of Dayton Press Conference: Regional Water Supply Contamination

Five on Two

Fox 45 News

City of Dayton files lawsuit against companies related to PFAS contamination, ABC-22 NOW (October 3, 2018)

Tyco, 3M, Others Want Out of Foam-Contaminated Water Suit, Law360 (September 11, 2018)

Marie Napoli’s Defamation Claim Proceeds Against Husband’s Ex-Partner, Attorney, New York Law Journal (August 16, 2018)

Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Carmen Victoria St. George allows Marie Napoli’s defamation and tort claims against Napoli’s former Partner, his attorney and publicist to continue.

Portland (ME) opioid lawsuit may end up in Ohio federal court, the Forecaster (July 30, 2018)

Drug companies want to move Portland’s opioid lawsuit to Ohio, CBS Local Affiliate WGME-13 (July 28, 2018)

Suffolk judge rules counties’ suit against opioid makers can go forward, Newsday (July 18, 2018)

NY Opioid Litigation on Fast Track as Judge Rules Counties May Press Claims Against Distributors, New York Law Journal (July 17, 2018)

Counties move forward with opioid lawsuit, Rockland/Westchester Journal News, part of the USA Today Network (June 26, 2018)

Judge Refuses Drugmakers’ Bid to Dismiss New York Opioid Cases, New York Law Journal (June 18, 2018)

2nd Circuit Revives 9/11 Workers’ Suit Against Battery Park City Authority, New York Law Journal (June 6, 2018)

Exclusive: Are Love Canal chemicals still making people sick?, The Buffalo News (June 1, 2018)

Priest alleges minor children harmed by lead exposure in Peru, St. Louis Record (May 28, 2018)

Study predicts most new cases of mesothelioma will not be related to occupational exposure after 2040, Madison-St. ClairRecord (May 7, 2018)

Opioid Watch, The Opioid Research Institute (April 17, 2018)

Damages sought from owners of metallurgical complex in Peru over minor childrens’ alleged injuries, St. Louis Record (April 5, 2018)

Nation’s top pain doctors face scores of opioid lawsuits, YAHOO! Finance (April 3, 2018)

New York Opioid Litigation Won’t Be Stayed; Lawyers Seeking 1,000 More County-Plaintiffs, Forbes.com (March 15, 2018)

Palm Beach County picks legal team to pursue opioid litigation, Sun Sentinel (March 13, 2018)

Opioid Judge Allows Some Discovery, Motions to Go Forward in MDL, The National Law Journal (March 7, 2018)

City of Gary files lawsuit against opioid manufacturers and distributors, Chicago Crusader February 8, 2018)

Westchester County Sues Drug Makers Over Opioid Crisis, CBS New York Local (February 6, 2018)

Speaker, “PFAS & Your Local Landfill: Managing Risk and Preparing for Regulations,” New York State of Associations (NYSAC) (November 14, 2019)

Speaker, “PFOAS and PFOS Contamination in NYS,” New York State City/County Management Association (NYSCMA), (May 29, 2019)

Panelist, “Avoiding Surprise: Unregulated Chemicals and Risk,” Perrin Conferences, (May 14, 2019)

Speaker, “PFAS Water Contamination,” National Organization of Black County Officials (NOBCO), (May 1-4, 2019)

Speaker, “PFOA – The Hot Documents,” HarrisMartin’s Water Contamination Litigation Conference, 2018

Faculty Member, “Groundwater Contamination Litigation: Proving and Defending Against Liability: Demonstrating Nexus, Causation and Injury to Recover Damages,” Strafford Webinars (June 5, 2018)

Speaker, “Opioids – The Latest Information and Strategies,” Masters of Mass Tort Seminar (January 17-19, 2018)

Speaker, “Flint Water Crisis: Get in the Know about Lead Poisoning and How It’s Litigated,” Perrin Conferences

National September 11th Memorial & Museum (Board Member)

American Bar Association

American Association for Justice

Diversity Law Institute, Member

Nassau County Bar Association

New York State Bar Association

Suffolk County Bar Association

Trial Law Institute, Member

St. John’s Loughlin Society (Benefactors’ Council)

St. John’s University School of Law Dean’s Advisory Counsel

Fordham University President Council

Mr. Napoli’s dedication, success, and service to his clients is recognized throughout the legal community and he has been honored throughout his illustrious career to have received many awards from his peers and commendations from professional organizations. These include:

America’s Elite Trial Lawyers, 2014, which recognizes the major and notable victories attorneys have achieved for clients

America’s Top 100 High Stakes Litigators®, 2018

American Institute of Personal Injury Attorneys (AIOPIA), Member

The American Trial Lawyers Association Top 100 Attorneys in the New York Metro Area, 2007, 2010, 2012, 2013 and 2014, which recognizes excellence in legal practice based on peer reviews and client feedback

The American Trial Lawyers Association Top 100 Trial Lawyers, 2008, 2016, 2017; Top 100 Trial Lawyers: New York, which recognizes a high degree of success in litigating cases

AV Preeminent ™Martindale-Hubbell® Top Rated Lawyers, a designation considered as the gold standard for peer and client reviews

Best of the Best Attorney’s Top 10 Personal Injury Law Attorney, 2020

Lawyers of Distinction, 2016

The Legal 500 United States, Top Tier 2014, which uses extensive background information and research to determine the top 500 lawyers and law firms each year

Litigation Counsel of America, The Trial Lawyer Honorary Society, Senior Fellow

Million Dollar Advocates Forum

The National Association of Distinguished Counsel, 2016-2019

National Law Journal Top 50 Elite Trial Lawyer, a prestigious honor awarded to a select number of attorneys for having the highest total recoveries

National Academy of Personal Injury Attorneys (NAOPIA), 2020

New York Super Lawyers® 2007-2019, which uses a multi-phase selection process to determine the best lawyers in the New York area

Trial Lawyers Board of Regents Litigator Awards, 2015 & 2016, Ranked Top 1% of Lawyers

As a recognized leader in the application and practice of law, Mr. Napoli shares his experience and skill with others in the legal field and uses his vast knowledge to further the pursuit of justice for victims. He was honored to have served on the Board of Directors of the New York Trial Lawyers Association, is active in numerous bar associations, has been interviewed on numerous television shows, in newspaper and magazine articles and is frequently consulted by attorneys around the country on a variety of legal issues.

St. John’s University School of Law, J.D.

Fordham University, BS

New York Illinois

United States District Court, Eastern District of New York

United States District Court, Southern District of New York

United States District Court, Northern District of New York

United States District Court, Western District of New York

United States District Court, Eastern District of Michigan

United States District Court, Eastern District of Missouri

United States District Court, Northern District of Illinois

United States District Court, Southern District of Illinois

United States District Court for the District of Colorado

United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit

United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit

United States Supreme Court