Profile: Thomas E Bezanson

Product Liability

Biography: Product Liability

Thomas Bezanson has more than 30 years of experience in commercial arbitration, the defence of products liability and other civil actions, representing both US and European clients.

Mr Bezanson has defended numerous cases nationwide and won a number of pivotal and nationally publicised lawsuits brought against The American Tobacco Company and Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corporation, involving claims of personal injury alleged to have resulted from cigarette smoking. He has defended claims brought by individual smokers, class actions and claims for medical reimbursement. Mr Bezanson also has represented Gallaher Ltd, the largest UK manufacturer of cigarettes, in connection with smoking and health litigation brought in the courts of England and Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland as well as in the Republic of Ireland. He helped obtain a judgment in favour of Gallaher in the first smoking and health trial ever conducted in the United Kingdom. More recently, he successfully obtained dismissals in more than 50 cases in London. Mr Bezanson has also represented companies in the cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries in the successful defence of products liability matters.

Mr Bezanson is a member of the New York City Bar Association, the New York State and American Bar Associations, the emeritus board of the New York Lawyers for the Public Interest and the Federal Bar Council's programme committee. He serves on the New York State Commission on the Jury and the New York State Bar Association's special committee on age discrimination. He has been designated as an Empire State Counsel for his pro bono work.

Mr Bezanson received his BA from Grinnell College in 1967, his MA from Rutgers University in 1971 and his JD, also from Rutgers, in 1974.