Frederick Fein

Full Profile

Fred Fein is the managing partner for the Miami office and also serves as the US Head of Product Liability. He has acted as lead trial counsel in numerous complex civil litigation matters, involving all types of high exposure damages such as wrongful death, brain damage and quadriplegia. Among them are products liability cases involving tires, automotive components, household appliances and automatic doors, aviation disasters, medical malpractice, nursing home, premises liability and insurance coverage claims. Fred has been called upon to serve as national and regional coordinating counsel and local counsel. He also serves as faculty for The Florida Bar-approved seminars on Florida trial practice.

Fred is AV rated by Martindale-Hubbell.

Admissions

• US Supreme Court
• US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
• US District Courts for the Southern, Middle and Northern Districts of Florida
• All Florida state courts

Education

• J.D., University of Miami School of Law, 1989
• B.S., B.A., Boston University, 1986

Memberships

• Product Liability Advisory Council (PLAC)
• Federation of Defense and Corporate Counsel (FDCC f/k/a FICC)
• Defense Research Institute (DRI)
• Association for Transportation Law, Logistics and Policy
• Florida Defense Lawyers Association
• Dade County Bar Association, Professionalism Committee, Co-Chairman, 2001-2002
• The Florida Bar, 11th Judicial Circuit Grievance Committee, Vice Chairman, 1999-2002

Experience

• Defense verdict for tire manufacturer in first verdict involving US Ford Explorer rollover death involving a tire tread separation.
• Defense verdict in concrete mixer death for manufacturer of mixer truck.
• Defense verdict upheld for tire manufacturer in the death of a reverend's teenage son.
• Defense verdict upheld for tire manufacturer in case involving one death and two injuries.
• Defense verdict and key appellate ruling in a products liability personal injury case involving a rollover accident alleged to be caused by tire tread separation. The 11th Circuit not only upheld a defense verdict for the tire manufacturer, but also clarified for the first time that it was both appropriate for a trial court to instruct the jury on Florida's "Government Rules Defense," and that compliance with FMVSS testing is sufficient to trigger it. This ruling is significant for all manufacturers as this defense states that the jury is to presume a product is not defective if a manufacturer complies with relevant governmental rules.
• Summary judgment for a national manufacturer of roofing systems and its distributor. Plaintiff alleged that the defendant's roofing adhesive was defective, causing portions of the roof to detach on a Bahamian airport building.
• Summary judgment for truck manufacturer in engine fire case burning over 75% of the plaintiff's body.
• Summary judgment for manufacturer in "crush death" case involving a commercial refuse truck.
• Summary judgment upheld for tire manufacturer in the wrongful death of a seven-year-old girl.

Presentations

• Co-presenter, “US Litigation School: Social Inflation & Nuclear Verdicts,” Webinar, January 2024
• "Trends and Defense Strategies in US Product Liability," Global Client Week, Clyde & Co, July 2016
• "Litigating Today's Tire/Vehicle Case: Inside Views," ABA TIPS Products Liability Committee's Emerging Issues in Motor Vehicle Liability Litigation Conference, April 2016

Publications

• "Product Liability: Don’t Let Plaintiffs Stack the Deck," Connections: A US Risk Perspective, Clyde & Co, August 2017
• "Product Liability: Emerging Risks Pose Challenges for Insurers and defendants," White Paper, Clyde & Co, July 2017
• "Using a Scalpel, Not a Machete: A Novel Approach to Limiting Scope of Discovery in Products Liability Actions," DRI Trials & Tribulations Newsletter, December 2015