Risk Avoidance, Crisis Management, Investigation and Defense
If a Legionnaire’s claim finds its way onto your doorstep, it is critical you obtain counsel and guidance immediately. DeHay’s Legionnaires defense team is your go-to resource for Legionnaire’s disease investigations and claims.
Attorneys in DeHay & Elliston’s Environmental practice group counsel clients facing matters related to Legionnaires’ disease outbreaks at every stage. We have provided rapid response counsel for outbreak investigations and regulatory compliance, handled many dozens of litigated matters related to Legionnaires’ disease, and have advised insurers as well as general counsel and top executives for companies in numerous industries on risk avoidance, compliance, and crisis management.
Thomas Bernier, who leads Dehay & Elliston’s Legionella defense team, is a recognized authority on legal and regulatory matters related to Legionnaires’ disease with experience counseling and defending claims in various complicated outbreak scenarios across the country. He and his team have the knowledge as well as the practical skills to step in, triage, and turn around investigations and claims that have spiraled out of control. But our experience also shows that earlier involvement leads to better results.
We have experienced Legionnaires’ disease litigators positioned to defend clients out of our offices in 5 states, numerous state jurisdictions, and have routinely handled investigations and served as Legionnaires’ disease litigation oversight counsel in jurisdictions outside our physical footprint.
team leader thomas bernier
Thomas Bernier – Partner
Office: Baltimore, MD
Phone: 410-783-7004
Email: tbernier@dehay.com
Fax: 410-783-7221
Biography
Thomas Bernier is a partner and trial attorney in DeHay & Elliston’s Toxic Tort and Environmental Practice Groups and serves as the firm’s National Legionnaires’ Disease Litigation Coordinating Counsel. With more than three decades of experience successfully defending complex and high-profile civil and criminal cases in the state and federal courts throughout Maryland and Washington, D.C., and in other parts of the country, he focuses his civil practice on the defense of toxic tort actions against companies in a wide range of industries, with particular concentration on claims alleging exposure to Legionella, asbestos, lead paint, carbon monoxide, and mold. Tom also has extensive experience defending personal injury, premises liability, and product liability. He is a frequent author and presenter on personal injury defense and other topics in his areas of concentration.
Further demonstrating his trial prowess and litigation capabilities, Tom has litigated hundreds of serious criminal cases over the past 30-plus years, including two capital cases. He is the author of Defending Allegations of Sexual Child Abuse in Maryland, an original treatise published in 2004 that highlights a subspecialty of his criminal practice and is used by the District Court of Maryland in the training of District Court Commissioners. Tom has been asked to testify before the House and Senate Judiciary Committees of the Maryland General Assembly on matters of criminal law and evidence, and he has counseled the writing staff of NBC’s Law and Order: Special Victims Unit on the perspective of a defense attorney in a sex crimes case and on technical accuracy of potential script ideas.
Working pro bono on the ABA “Death Penalty Project,” Tom obtained a life-without-parole verdict in death penalty resentencing jury trial in Miller County, Arkansas as part of a three-lawyer defense team.
Honors
Martindale-Hubbell Peer Judicial and Review Rating: AV Preeminent; Top-Rated Lawyer in Mass Torts (2014-16) and Insurance Law (2014-16)
Best Lawyers in America
– Lawyer of the Year (Baltimore), 2018, 2020
– Product Liability Litigation – Defendants, 2016-22
– Insurance Litigation, 2016-22
Expert Network Distinguished© Lawyer
Top 100 Trial Lawyers in Maryland, American Academy of Trial Attorneys
Maryland Super Lawyers, 2014-22
Selected for Rue Ratings’ “Best Attorneys of America”
Top 100 Litigation Lawyers in Maryland, American Society of Legal Advocates
Bar Admissions
Maryland
District of Columbia
U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland
U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
Education
University of Baltimore School of Law, J.D., 1983
University of Notre Dame, B.A., 1980
Legal Associations
Defense Research Institute
Maryland Defense Counsel, Inc.
Community
Chief Hearing Officer, Baltimore Department of Human Resources Civil Service Commission (2006-2018)
Peer Review Committee Member, Attorney Grievance Commission of Maryland
Mentor, University of Baltimore School of Law Mentor Program
Running coach for 2012 Olympic pentathlon competitor
Publications
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Thomas P. Bernier Discusses Legionnaires’ Disease with Perrin Conferences, December 2, 2019
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Quoted in “As Legionnaires’ Disease Cases Surge, Lawsuits Pile Up,” Circle of Blue, November 7, 2019
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“Is There a Legal Standard of Care for Legionnaires’ Disease?” (Author) Law360, October 23, 2019
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Quoted in “Legionnaires’ Disease: 95 Confirmed Cases, 1 Dead. Can They Sue?” Citizen Times, October 4, 2019
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Featured on “Attorney Breaks Down Legal Side of Legionnaires’ Disease,” WENY-TV, October 3, 2019
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“Insuring Legionella Risks” (co-author), Risk Management, January/February 2019
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“What General Counsel Should Know About Legionnaires’ Disease” (co-author), Today’s General Counsel, October 2015
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“New ASHRAE Standard Dictates Legionnaires’ Disease Prevention,” Indoor Environment Connection, May 2, 2012
Webinars
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Presenter, “Legionnaires’ Disease: Legal Risks and Claims Management Strategies,” Perrin Conference Webinar, Monday, December 2, 2019
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Presenter, “Legionnaires’ Disease: Legal Risks and Claims Management Strategies,” GS TTEL Webinar Series, July 18, 2019
Linkedin Profile
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Meet Our Attorneys
We Have a Team of Experienced, Trustworthy and Compassionate Attorneys
Our Experienced Team will be your best defense
We are committed to providing high-quality legal services to clients in a timely, practical and effective manner that emphasizes value and personal attention.
Since 1992 DeHay & Elliston is recognized for its expertise in the defense of toxic tort, products liability, premises liability, medical/legal malpractice, professional negligence, general negligence and commercial litigation, and legionnaires claims specifically since 2011.
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