News & Archive

(April 12, 2006)

Wednesday, April 19, 2006
8:30-10:00am (Continental Breakfast at 8:00)
Harvard Law School
John Chipman Gray Room, 2nd Floor, Pound Hall
(click for map)

Francis McGovern is a Professor of Law at Duke University Law School. He is a national expert on designing dispute systems for settling claims involving multiple disputants. In his talk, Professor McGovern will outline the basic principles of dispute system design. He will illustrate his talk with examples of those disputes in which he has been involved (as a court-appointed special master or neutral expert, he has developed solutions in much of the significant mass claim litigation in the U.S., including the DDT toxic exposure litigation in Alabama, the Dalkon-Shield controversy, and his current work involving the silicone gel breast implant litigation).

Professor McGovern's name is virtually synonymous with "mass claim" litigation--the often tens of thousands of tort claims arising out of a major disaster or major product liability issue. A prolific writer, he is the co-author of two published books, Successful Litigation Techniques and The Preparation of a Product Liability Case, and two books in progress, Toxic Substances Litigation and Alternative Dispute Resolution. Both practitioners and scholars rely on his writing for its integration of extensive practical experience with conceptual analysis of fundamental problems in dispute resolution and complex litigation. Francis McGovern earned his J.D. from the University of Virginia and a B.A. from Yale University.

Please RSVP to clodge@law.harvard.edu.