Ellyn Hurd

Attorney Ellyn Hurd is a partner at Simmons Hanly Conroy. She joined the firm in 2012 and has focused her practice on fighting the opioid epidemic and helping victims of sexual abuse and social media addiction.

“My intense focus on procedural matters and evidentiary issues allows the team as a whole to make critical strategic decisions quickly and accurately,” said Ellyn. “It’s grueling but satisfying. We are fighting the good fight.”

Before joining the firm, Ellyn worked as an associate at a law firm in New Bedford, Massachusetts, where she focused her practice on real property litigation and municipal matters.

Uber Passenger Sexual Assault Litigation

In 2023, Ellyn was appointed by U.S. District Judge Charles R. Breyer to the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee (PSC) in the multidistrict litigation against Uber on behalf of passengers who have experienced sexual assault and misconduct by drivers while using the platform. The case is pending in the U.S. District Court in the Northern District of California.

Ellyn is steadfast in her commitment to fight for justice on behalf of the countless victims who have experienced sexual assault and misconduct while trusting rideshare platforms with their safety.

Social Media Addiction Litigation

Ellyn is also part of the team currently litigating against social media companies on behalf of adolescents suffering from addiction and personal injury.

In 2025, Ellyn was appointed by U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers to the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee Leadership (PSC) in the multidistrict litigation consolidating claims against Meta, Facebook, TikTok, Snap, and YouTube for their role in designing defective and addictive platforms that “engage” adolescents by exploiting the neurobiology of their developing brains.

The features that exist on some or all platforms, including autoplay, endless feeds, intermittent variable rewards, trophies, social metrics, notifications, and usage-maximizing algorithms, result in injury and serious mental health harms to young adolescents.

As alleged in the complaint, the platforms offer inadequate age-verification and parental controls, provide tools that foreseeably connect children to predators, and have failed to warn about their platforms’ defects and the serious mental-health harms that they cause.

Fighting the Opioid Epidemic

Ellyn’s firm is co-lead of the National Prescription Opiate Multi-District Litigation pending in Cleveland, Ohio. Ellyn represents hundreds of cities and counties across the United States in this massive and ground-breaking litigation to secure monetary and injunctive relief for the pharmaceutical industry’s decades-long improper promotion, distribution, and dispensing of prescription opioid medications.

Ellyn has been involved in all aspects of the case since its inception and was a critical part of the team that secured billions of dollars in nationwide settlements, the funds of which are dedicated solely to the abatement of the crisis. In addition to working up the legal theory, conducting discovery, and managing multiple experts, Ellyn spearheaded the admission of defendants’ documents and deposition testimony in multiple trials across the United States.

San Francisco Opioid Trial (Hon. Charles R. Breyer)

In 2022, Ellyn served on the trial team that helped secure a $230 million settlement with Walgreens for the city of San Francisco over the company’s role in the opioid epidemic.

After the 11-week liability trial, U.S. District Judge Charles R. Breyer found Walgreens liable for contributing to the opioid epidemic and creating a public nuisance in the city. That ruling was the catalyst for the global settlement by CVS, Walmart, and Walgreens of over $12 billion.

The New York Opioid Trial (Hon. Jerry Garguilo)

In 2021, Ellyn and her team successfully litigated the nation’s first opioid case to be heard before a state jury. Over a dozen defendants were present at the start of the trial, which became a catalyst for the Big 3 distributor settlement of over $20 billion nationwide just weeks into the trial.

The trial, considered the longest jury trial in NY history, resulted in a jury verdict against the remaining defendants, Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, and its subsidiaries.

The Cleveland Opioid Trial (Hon. Dan Aaron Polster)

In 2019, Ellyn was part of the trial team in the first federal bellwether trial against the opioid manufacturers. The team hammered out the final settlement details on the night before opening statements and secured a total recovery of $325 million for two Ohio counties.

Helping Victims of Sexual Abuse

In 2012, Ellyn was involved in the first round of litigation against Fairfield University; the Society of Jesus of New England (Jesuits); the Order of Malta, American Association, USA; Haiti Fund, Inc.; Father Paul E. Carrier, S.J.; and Hope E. Carter, in which the team secured a settlement of $12 million on behalf of 24 impoverished abuse victims in Haiti.

When additional victims came forward, Ellyn helped achieve a landmark $60 million class action settlement in 2019 on behalf of over 150 Haitian nationals. She was involved from the initial meetings with the clients through the mediation that resolved the case.

She travelled extensively to Haiti, responding to discovery requests, preparing pleadings, prepping witnesses for depositions (who did not speak English), and conducting and defending depositions in Port au Prince, Cap Haitian, Dominican Republic, and throughout the United States. In addition, Ellyn arranged travel and documentation for clients who lacked identification.

“That I have been able to focus my practice on these types of cases is a testament to my firm’s commitment to standing up for clients who have no voice,” Ellyn said.