Biography

Eric M. Kraus concentrates his practice on complex civil litigation matters with an emphasis on pharmaceutical products and medical device liability.  Mr. Kraus' practice has also included toxic tort litigation, employment matters, construction litigation, medical malpractice litigation, intellectual property law and general commercial litigation.

Litigation Matters

Mr. Kraus has tried approximately 50 cases to verdict and has handled trials and argued appeals in both federal and state court. He concentrates his practice on complex civil litigation matters, including mass tort and class actions, with an emphasis on pharmaceutical products, medical device liability and toxic tort. Mr. Kraus has defended cases centering on scientific issues ranging from epidemiology, toxicology, and pathology to immunology and materials science. He has also been involved with Daubert hearings regarding the admissibility of scientific evidence around the country.

Mr. Kraus' defense experience includes matters involving repetitive stress injury claims, RICO, antitrust, fraud, construction litigation, employment matters, intellectual property, general commercial litigation and medical malpractice. His recent litigation successes include obtaining a unanimous defense jury verdict in under an hour on behalf of Sedgwick's physician client in a state court litigation.

Presentations & Publications

Mr. Kraus' presentations include:

• “Daubert Motions in Class Certification Proceedings,” Strafford Publications Webinar, New York, NY (November 17, 2009).
• Moderator, "Do Good Things Really Come in Small Packages? Nanotechnology, Law and Policy: How our Legal System Handles Emerging Technologies," NYC Bar Association, New York, NY (June 25, 2009).
• "A Not-So-Beautiful Relationship: What Happens When the Government is Represented by Class Counsel?," and "Foreign Regulatory Actions and the Implications for U.S. Class Actions," Class Action Task Force CLE Seminar, Chicago, IL (May 22, 2008).
• "Pharmacogenomics: Personalized Medicine - Risk and Potential Liability for Product Manufacturers," co-presented at the New York Bar Association's Annual Meeting (January 31, 2008).
• "Jury Communication: Changing Perceptions of the Industry/FDA and Putting Adverse Events and the Approval Process in Context," American Conference Institute's 12th Annual Drug and Medical Device Litigation Conference (December 2007) (panelist).
• "Pharmacogenomics and the Learned Intermediary Defense in Drug Litigation," Pharmacogenomics: 21st-Century Challenges and Opportunities for New Jersey's Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Industries (conference organized and chaired by Mr. Kraus; cosponsored by Sedgwick, Becton Dickinson, and Fairleigh Dickinson University) (October 2007).

His publications include:

• “Ashcroft v. Iqbal: Has the US Supreme Court Smoothed the Path to Dismissal or Is It Still a Rocky and Uncertain Road? A First Look at Some Data,” Sedgwick Issue Tracker (August 2009). 
• "'Data Mining' and the Pharmaceutical Industry: Constitutional Challenges to Prescription Drug Privacy Laws Reach the Second Circuit," Sedgwick Issue Tracker (June 2009).
• “Scratching Below the Surface: New Role for Expert Testimony and the ‘Daubert’ Hearing,” New York Law Journal (May 18, 2009).
• "Setting High Standards in Internal Policies," GC New York, a special publication of the New York Law Journal (October 16, 2008).
• "There's a New Sheriff in Town: European Commission Investigations Prompt U.S. Antitrust Class Actions," International Association of Defense Counsel (April 2008).
• "Its No Small Matter: FDA Task Force and EPA Weigh in on Nanotechnology," Pharmaceutical Litigation Reporter (March 24, 2008).
• "Pharmacogenomics and the 'Learned Intermediary,'" Product Liability Law360 (September 2007); also published in Health Law360 (September 2007).
• "Dietary Supplement Makers and Adverse Event Reporting," New York Law Journal (April 2007).
• "FDA Warns New Daylight Saving Time Change May Cause 'Unpredictable' Medical Equipment Glitches," Sedgwick's News Flash (March 2007).
• "Gender Discrimination Class Upheld in Wal-Mart Case," Employment Law360 (March 2007) (coauthor); first published as "Ninth Circuit Upholds Class Certification in Wal-Mart Gender Bias Action," Sedgwick's Employment Briefings Alert (February 2007).
• "Managing and Avoiding Mass Tort Litigation ," chapter in Aspatore Books' executive treatise, "Food and Drug Law Settlements and Negotiations" (December 2006).
• "Do Pro Bono Work? Are You Crazy?", New York Law Journal Magazine (September 2006).
• "Litigation Challenges in the U.S. for the Japanese Pharmaceutical Industry," Pharmaceutical Litigation Reporter (August 2006).
• "Investigating the Investigators: Balancing the Needs of Independent Researchers With Litigation Imperatives," Privacy & Data Security Law Journal (June 2006).
• "New Labeling and 'Adverse Reactions': Implications for Product Liability Suits," Pharmaceutical Law & Industry Report, Bureau of National Affairs (June 2006).
• "Living Dangerously in New Jersey: Nationwide Class Certification Affirmed in New Jersey Consumer Fraud Case," Sedgwick's Sidebar (April 2006).
• "Get Off the Witness Stand!  Keeping Testimony Interesting," Trials and Tribulations, Defense Research Institute (Winter 2003).
• "Herbal Remedies and Dietary Supplements: Surveying the Landscape of Litigation Trends," Pharmaceutical Litigation Reporter(May 2001).
• "Junk Science," International Insurance Law Review (April 1994) (addressing questionably valid scientific methodologies).

Memberships & Honors

He is a member of the Defense Research Institute, the American Bar Association, and the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, for which he chairs the Science & Law Committee.

He has been recognized several times for outstanding mass tort litigation work. He is named in the 2006 and 2007 editions of The Best Lawyers in America and in the 2005 and 2006 "Best Lawyers in New York" lists, published in New York Magazine.

Following graduation from law school, Mr. Kraus joined the Kings County District Attorney's Office in Brooklyn, New York. During the course of his eleven-year career with the District Attorney's Office, he prosecuted organized crime, corruption, and murder cases, and served as Deputy Chief of the Rackets Bureaus.  Mr. Kraus joined Sedgwick in 1990.