Brian Anderson has over 25 years of experience successfully leading the defense and settlement of aggregated litigation for major corporations in different industries and different areas of law. He has litigated more than 400 class actions, mass tort cases, multi-district proceedings, state attorney general lawsuits, and mass-joinder actions in the state and/or federal courts of 39 states and the District of Columbia. Most of Brian’s experience is at the trial court level, yet he has handled appeals in most federal circuits and many state appellate courts. He has also advised in the defense of class actions brought in other countries.
Brian has successfully defended class actions in the motor vehicle, food and beverage, pharmaceutical, consumer product, technology, and insurance industries. His practice has covered the law of product liability, negligence, common law and statutory fraud, express and implied warranty, RICO, Medicaid fraud, pharmaceutical regulation, environmental regulation, insurance regulation, and employee benefits.
Brian has been listed by Chambers USA and Legal 500 as one of the leading product liability class action defense lawyers in the United States.
Brian is a co-author of The Class Action Playbook, a guide to the strategic decisions underlying the pursuit and defense of class actions. He was an adjunct professor at Georgetown University Law Center in 2006 and has been a frequent author and speaker in his field.
From 2000 to 2002, Brian served in O’Melveny’s Office of the Chair, leading firmwide initiatives to improve its internal governance structure, attorney development programs, and information technology services. Brian was the Administrative Partner of the Firm’s Washington, DC office from 2004 to 2006, during which he led the creation of a Legal Service Center with e-discovery expertise to support the Firm’s litigation teams.
Brian works pro bono for the Election Protection voter-assistance call center run by the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.
Brian is a member of the Board of Trustees of Ford’s Theatre Society and Chair of its Education and Leadership Committee. He is the author of Images of America: Ford’s Theatre and co-author of Images of America: The Lincoln Memorial.
An Eagle Scout, Brian is a longtime adult volunteer in the scouting program.
Trial Court Cases
- Led the successful defense of lawsuits against a major food manufacturer alleging deceptive marketing of a food product
- Lead member of multi-firm defense teams representing major pharmaceutical companies in the successful defense of lawsuits brought by state attorneys general challenging the marketing of prescription drugs
- Led the successful multi-firm defense of a proposed nationwide class action against importers of allegedly defective tires
- Led the successful defense of several dozen proposed class actions against a major automobile manufacturer alleging safety-related defects in police cars
- Led the successful defense of proposed class action by consumers against a municipal water district alleging unsafe lead levels in drinking water
- Negotiated and obtained judicial approval of settlements of multiple putative class actions against a major automobile manufacture alleging concealment of alleged defects
Appellate Court Cases
- Briefed successful appeal to a state Supreme Court challenging entry of summary judgment against a pharmaceutical company in an action concerning marketing of its drugs
- Briefed and argued successful appeals to the Louisiana Court of Appeals and Texas Court of Appeals of class certification orders in two different lawsuits against a major automobile manufacturer
- Briefed and argued successful appeal to the Arizona Supreme Court of an appellate court decision authorizing liberal standing rules in proposed class actions
Admissions
Bar Admissions
- California
- District of Columbia
Court Admissions
- US District Courts: Central and Northern Districts of California and the District of Columbia
- US Courts of Appeals: Second, Third, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, Eighth, Ninth, Eleventh, and DC Circuits
- US Supreme Court
Education
- Stanford University, J.D., 1986: with distinction; note editor, Stanford Law Review, 1984-86
- University of California at Berkeley, B.A., 1982: magna cum laude; Phi Beta Kappa
Professional Activities
Clerkships
- The Honorable Laurence H. Silberman, US Court of Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit (1986-87)
Corporate & Government Experience
Special Assistant to the General Counsel
- US Department of Education (1987-89)