Craig Woods

Craig A. Woods is an experienced litigator whose practice focuses especially on complex product liability and commercial litigation and arbitration matters. He represents national and multi-national corporations in technically oriented litigation and arbitrations, including toxic tort, chemical and biotechnology product liability litigation; information technology disputes; patent litigation; and other engineering and technology-related disputes.

Craig has extensive experience organizing multi-disciplinary expert teams and mounting expert testimony admissibility challenges under Daubert/Frye, and he is highly skilled in the use of court-appointed experts and expert analysis, testing and simulations to support litigation.

Craig’s practice also encompasses matters such as fraud, defamation, negligence, contract disputes, malicious prosecution, insurance disputes, trademark controversies, unfair competition and other critical areas of business litigation.

Prior to joining Mayer Brown in 1995, Craig served as Law Clerk to The Honorable William C. Conner, US District Court for the Southern District of New York (1994–1995).

Education :

• University of Kansas, BSEE, with highest distinction
• Georgetown University Law Center, JD, cum laude

Admissions :

• Illinois
• US District Court for the District of Arizona
• US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois

Experience :

• Isocyanate Litigation — Currently serving as counsel to Fortune 100 company in connection with 1300 plaintiff consolidated product liability case pending in Alabama state court arising out of sales of isocyanates for use in coal mine roof and ventilation control polyurethane products.  Responsible for developing, implementing, and coordinating science defense including mounting Frye challenge to admissibility of testimony from pulmonology and toxicology expert witnesses.
• Diacetyl Litigation – Serving as national counsel to manufacturer of diacetyl involved in numerous personal injury lawsuits around the country relating to exposures to butter flavoring products.  Responsible for developing, implementing, and coordinating science defense, including mounting challenges to admissibility of expert testimony.
• ICD Lead Litigation – Serving as national counsel to manufacturer of electrical leads for use with implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) involved in product liability litigation in various jurisdictions around the country.  Responsible for developing, implementing, and coordinating science defense.
• Biotechnology Product Liability Litigation — Responsible for developing science defense to claims brought by dozens of plaintiffs in various jurisdictions around the country against major US pharmaceutical company asserting defects in an automated immunoassay blood screening test. Science case involved expertise in immunology, immunochemistry, biostatistics, and biology. Successfully defended only case brought to trial.
• Tractor Patent Litigation — Worked with structural and mechanical engineering experts to develop infringement science case against manufacturer of infringing belted agricultural tractor. Obtained favorable claim construction in Markman hearing based on expert analysis. Case ultimately settled on very favorable terms.
• Information Technology Arbitration — Prosecuted/defended multi-million dollar breach of contract arbitration against software development company relating to functionality shortcomings of automated retirement benefits web site before the American Arbitration Association.