Erin Johnston, P.C.

Commercial Litigation

• Co-lead trial counsel for 3M Company in multiple bellwether trials in largest MDL in history regarding 3M’s allegedly defective dual-ended Combat Arms Earplugs™.

• Lead trial counsel for Boeing in Alabama federal court on claims of wrongful contract termination and trade secret misuse related to a government contract to service the U.S. Air Force fleet of KC-135 aerial refueling tankers.

• Won motion to dismiss as lead counsel in Delaware Chancery Court post-closing dispute over United Healthcare Group’s $750 million acquisition of USHealth, a short-term health insurance company.

• Won motion to dismiss as Counsel to AbbVie in antitrust litigation alleging sham infringement suits over AndroGel patents.  

• Counsel to AbbVie in multiple antitrust actions over blockbuster drugs Namenda and AndroGel alleging improper reverse payments to generic drug manufacturers.

• Counsel to Cognizant Technology Solutions in multiple matters alleging failed ERP implementations.  

• Counsel to Polaris in series of personal injury suits filed across the country related to off-road vehicles.

• Lead counsel to death-row habeas petitioner in week-long evidentiary hearing to overturn capital sentence.

• Lead counsel to Penton in litigation over $100 million in tax benefits for Penton’s $1.6 billion sale of Informa, a leading global business intelligence company.

• Lead plaintiff’s counsel to Jones & Frank in action alleging that a competitor misappropriated trade secrets.

• Counsel to Pindrop in Eastern District of Virginia copyright infringement and unfair competition suit over voice biometric technology.

• Plaintiff’s counsel to Abbott in Delaware patent infringement suit over cardiac repair devices.

• Counsel to Honeywell in action alleging trade secret misappropriation related to government contract to supply the Enhanced Combat Helmet to the U.S. military.

• Won summary judgment for Hershey in multidistrict class action litigation alleging price-fixing of chocolate confectionery products in the United States. This case was featured in the article “Big Suits” in The American Lawyer.

• Won summary judgment for defense contractor Textron in Massachusetts federal court proceeding alleging breach of contract, tortious interference, and unfair trade practices.

• Won summary judgment for TOUSA, Inc., a homebuilder in Florida, the Mid-Atlantic, Texas and the West, in fraudulent conveyance claims. Also counsel to TOUSA in securities litigation, government investigation, insurance disputes and restructuring matters.

• Counsel to board of directors of San Juan Cable LLC in antitrust matter alleging that a series of litigation filed against a potential competitor was sham litigation. Puerto Rico federal court awarded a full summary judgment victory for defendants.

• Counsel to cable company Charter Communications regarding lender claims of breach of $11 billion secured financing agreement. Court found in favor of Charter on all claims, in what the Court characterized as “one of the most hotly contested confirmation battles ever conducted.”

• Counsel to Charter in California federal court action seeking $10 billion for alleged discrimination in Charter’s cable programming carriage decisions.

• Counsel to Innkeepers USA Trust, the owner and operator of an extensive portfolio of extended-stay and select-service hotels, in expedited litigation leading to the successful completion of $1 billion transaction following the first day of trial. 

Other Notable Representations

• Counsel to several companies in large-scale government investigations before the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission, for allegations ranging from accounting fraud to violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
• Counsel to multiple Fortune 500 companies in internal investigations and other pre-litigation matters regarding potential misconduct to assess and avoid risk of related government investigation or civil litigation.

NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Legal Intern, 2006–2007

Pro bono counsel in a variety of criminal and family law matters, including serving as lead trial counsel in multiple successful trial court proceedings.