Christopher R. Drury

Chris Drury is a member of the firm’s Product & General Liability, Environmental/Toxic Tort, and Employment Law practice groups.  His practice focuses primarily on complex commercial litigation in state and federal courts with an emphasis on disputes involving products liability, toxic tort, class action suits, breach of contract, business torts, and unfair trade practices. He also practices in the area of employment law. Chris has defended products liability and toxic tort claims against automobile and auto parts manufacturers, as well as manufacturers of medical devices, pharmaceuticals, and commercial products. Chris has also represented clients in business disputes involving noncompetition agreements, business insurance claims, the Uniform Commercial Code, trademark, copyright, and patent infringement claims, and theft of proprietary information and trade secrets claims.

In addition to defending clients in commercial litigation, Chris has experience litigating creditors’ rights, including representing secured and unsecured creditors in bankruptcy actions. Chris has also handled matters involving foreclosures, replevin, and reclamation of goods, and represented landlords with leasing issues, evictions, and collections.  Chris has also represented clients in proceedings with the Connecticut Department of Public Utility Control.

Chris combines his career’s worth of experience in business and commercial litigation with a deep knowledge of electronic discovery and technical data to direct all phases of pretrial discovery. Chris has managed and overseen discovery for product and toxic tort cases involving electronically stored information. Chris has also handled all aspects of pretrial motion practice, taken and defended numerous depositions, and assisted trial teams in coordinating witnesses, preparing trial documents and exhibits, and supporting the development of trial strategy. Specific to product liability cases, has experience defending large multinational companies in the pharmaceutical, medical device, health care, and automobile industries. He has advised clients regarding issues of medical causation and regulatory compliance, and has assisted with preparing medical device and prescription drug actions for trial and developing case theories and defenses.

Admissions

• Connecticut
• Massachusetts
• Maine
• U.S. District Court, District of Connecticut
• U.S. District Court, District of Massachusetts
• U.S. District Court, District of Maine
• U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
• U.S. Supreme Court

Memberships

• American Bar Association: Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Section, Products Liability Committee
• Connecticut Bar Association: International Law Section and Intellectual Property Section
• DRI, The Voice of the Defense Bar

Community Involvement

• Vice-Chair of the Glastonbury Education Foundation

• Represented medical device manufacturers in actions involving female pelvic mesh and metal-on-metal hip prostheses, including federal MDL actions.
• Represented an international pharmaceutical company at trial in Connecticut state court in a product liability action involving the company’s anti-coagulant medication.
• Obtained complete summary judgment in favor of a pharmaceutical company against claims brought under the Connecticut Product Liability Act alleging injuries related to the plaintiff's use of Risperdal.
• Represented automobile manufacturers in product liability actions involving allegedly defective ignition switches.
• Represented automobile parts suppliers in product liability actions involving allegedly defective seatbelts and airbags.
• Represented a computer manufacturer in a putative class action suit in Maine alleging unfair competition and deceptive advertising.
• Represented a waste management company in Maine in a class action suit involving alleged antitrust violations of the Sherman Act.
• Obtained an order enforcing an arbitration clause in a “click wrap” agreement and dismissing a class action lawsuit against a Fortune 500 client in Maine. Order was upheld on appeal.
• Procured a settlement in a trademark infringement action which included entry of judgment for monetary damages and a permanent injunction requiring the defendants to give up all rights to the accused infringing trademarks.
• Obtained a preliminary injunction order enforcing the terms of a non-competition agreement.
• Obtained summary judgment order invalidating the use of the term M4 as a trademark for firearms. Order was upheld on appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.

Education

J.D., cum laude, Boston College Law School

B.A., Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, Middlebury College