William E. "Bill" Padgett

With a complex litigation practice that is national in scope, Bill’s experience is deep and far-reaching. He represents clients against product liability, toxic tort and commercial claims involving chemical products, agricultural and crop protection products, medical devices, pharmaceuticals, and a variety of other products. More recently, Bill’s practice primarily has included complex and large scale litigation, including multi-district litigation (MDLs) involving the defense of toxic tort personal injury lawsuits brought against product manufacturers, as well as commercial claims involving product defect, non-performance and conspiracy allegations.

Bill leads and assists several national defense teams in defending manufacturers and distributors of crop protection products, opioid pharmaceuticals, chemicals/solvents, medical devices and other products in toxic tort, product liability and commercial litigation throughout the United States. In this capacity, he has addressed manufacturer and distributor conspiracy claims, federal preemption, the admissibility of expert witnesses’ opinions, and a wide variety of other product liability issues under numerous state laws. Bill is also well-versed in economic loss doctrine and various warranty defenses as part of his commercial litigation practice, and has worked with the firm’s environmental attorneys in an array of litigation matters.Notably, Bill advises clients on business practices intended to avoid product liability and commercial claims, including in the areas of occupational health and safety, product advertising and warranty practices.