Deborah B. Rouen

Deborah B. Rouen has more than 30 years experience defending class actions, mass torts and complex litigation involving tobacco, pharmaceuticals, refineries, crop fertilizer and Hurricane Katrina and Road Home suits. She focuses on products liability, toxic tort, environmental, fraud, misrepresentation, conspiracy and punitive damages matters.

She has served as national counsel and liaison counsel for defendants, has successfully defeated class certification in both federal and state courts and has a strong track record of early case dismissals through advancing novel legal arguments in motion practice.

Debbie has defended pharmaceutical and tobacco companies from suits brought by attorney generals in multiple states, defended tobacco companies in foreign sovereign litigation and led teams of lawyers in defending clients in multi-district litigation.

Debbie serves as leader of the firm’s Product Liability Team. After serving a three-year term as the first woman elected to the firm’s Executive Committee, Debbie was appointed Chair of the firm’s Diversity Committee and served in that role for five years.

She worked to expand cultural inclusion, partnered with clients to meet diversity requisites, improved recruitment, mentoring and retention of women and minority lawyers, obtained firm recognition in national rankings of women and minority lawyers and increased firm support of minority-sponsored legal, cultural and social events.

She is also the former leader of the Class Action/Complex Litigation team. In the community, she serves as Past President of the Board of Directors of the Jefferson Performing Arts Society. She frequently provides pro bono services at homeless shelters throughout the New Orleans area.

Debbie has served on the planning committee for DRI Drug and Medical Device conferences, on the DRI Women in the Law Committee, and as Vice President of the Board of the New Orleans Bar Foundation. She is a former board member of the New Orleans Chapter of the Federal Bar Association.

Education:

• Loyola University New Orleans College of Law, J.D., 1983
• Loyola University, B.Mus., 1977

Court Admissions:

• United States Supreme Court
• United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
• United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana
• United States District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana
• United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana