Attorney Profile
John C. Farrell
Areas of Practice
Contact Info
Overview
Over the past 27 years, Jack has developed considerable knowledge and experience in the fields of health care and commercial liability. As a shareholder in the firm's Health Care Department, he focuses his practice in medical, dental and nursing malpractice, long-term care, and the defense of nursing homes and hospitals, with a secondary interest in general construction liability and product liability cases.
Jack's areas of practice cover medical malpractice involving the representation of hospitals, nursing homes, acute and long-term care facilities, physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses and physical therapists; dental malpractice involving the representation of oral surgeons, periodontists, prosthodontists, endodontists, orthodontists and general dentists; construction liability cases involving the representation of general contractors, subcontractors, engineers, architects and surveyors; premises liability involving the representation of commercial shopping centers, corporate centers, health care offices, etc.; product liability with respect to the representation of manufacturers, distributors and wholesalers; and legal malpractice involving the representation of lawyers, paralegals and legal secretaries.
Jack has handled more than 1,000 medical and dental malpractice cases, 250 to 500 construction and premises liability cases, and 50 to 100 product liability cases. He has taken approximately 50 cases to trial, more than 30 of which were tried to a jury. All but three of these trials resulted in defense verdicts. The three plaintiff verdicts were in the amounts of $2,511, $30,000, and $500,000. He has also handled class actions involving motor vehicle and consumer fraud, the Paxil litigation and EtG testing.
Jack received his Bachelor of Arts degree cum laude from Ursinus College, and earned his juris doctor from The Dickinson School of Law.
In addition to his legal career, Jack has been on the board of directors of the American Missionary Fellowship and is a teacher at Great Valley Presbyterian Church. He has served as manager for Berwyn/Paoli girls' softball teams from ages 10 to 16, as well as softball tournament teams, and was the coach of the Paoli Wildcats 11-12 boys basketball team.
Results
Obtained partial summary judgment for a waste management company in a case involving the Federal Motor Vehicle Code and later resolved the case, which had a $10 million demand and involved four fatalities and one brain injured passenger in a multi-vehicle tractor trailer/car accident.
Successfully represented a commercial retail establishment in the food business arena in a products liability case involving a multi-piece wheel assembly which resulted in plaintiff unfortunately experiencing permanent disability when the multi-piece wheel assembly separated from the vehicle striking the pedestrian in the head.
Successfully defended a commercial business establishment in a subrogation action that resulted in a fire destroying a building and business, resulting in excess of $10 million in claimed property damage and business interruption losses. Obtained summary judgment and then resolved the case.
Successfully defended a product manufacturer in a case concerning a chemical explosion at a plant resulting in excess of $10 million in property damage and five fatalities.
In a dental malpractice case with a $600,000 pre-trial demand, $1 million trial demand and a request for punitive damages, presented experts in the fields of general dentistry, endodontics, and oral surgery. The jury verdict came back in favor of the plaintiff against the defendant in the amount of $2,511.
In a medical malpractice action claiming a failure to refer and perform a cardiac catheterization, through the use of medical experts, including experts in the fields of general cardiology and invasive cardiology, able to obtain a defense verdict.
In a nursing malpractice case, with the patient dying in a nursing home, the jury came back with a defense verdict.
In a physical therapy malpractice matter involving a patient who claimed to have re-torn his shoulder, the jury returned a defense verdict.
Thought Leadership
Lectured to Philadelphia County Dental Society
Lectured to Pennsylvania Psychology Association
Lectured to Temple University, Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
Seminars on risk management techniques and controls
Seminars on discoverability of witness statements
Seminar on litigation management plans
Lectured to study group of Joseph Gian-Grasso, D.D.S. on dental malpractice trends
“Recent Pennsylvania Superior Court Decision Affirms Defense’s Introduction of Two Medical Experts on the Standard of Care as Proper Corroborative Evidence,” Defense Digest, Vol. 25, No. 3, September 2019
“Recent Court Decision Potentially Expands Ability of Medical Malpractice Plaintiffs to Forum Shop in Philadelphia County,” Defense Digest, Vol. 24, No. 2, June 2018
"Consider Retaining Multiple Experts to Opine on the Standard of Care to Increase Your Chances of Securing a Defense Verdict," Defense Digest, Vol. 22, No. 4, December 2016
"Pennsylvania Supreme Court Upholds Wrongful Birth Statute," Defense Digest, Vol. 22, No. 1, March 2016
"A Good Samaritan Is Hard to Find," Defense Digest, Vol. 9, No. 2, June 2003
"Pennsylvania Superior Court Holds that Root Canal Requires Informed Consent," Defense Digest, Dec. Vol. 5, No. 6, 1999
"Taking the Bite Out of Strict Liability for Dentists," Defense Digest, February 1996
"Intervening and Superseding Causes Still Alive and Well" (co-author with A. Berman), Counterpoint, October 1993