New York, N.Y. – Sheila L. Birnbaum is a distinguished partner at Dechert, where she co-chairs the firm’s product liability and mass torts practice, specializing in intricate product liability issues, mass torts, and insurance litigation. Before her tenure at Dechert, Birnbaum held notable positions at prominent firms, including co-chair of the global product liability and mass torts practice at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan and leading the product liability group at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom. She also served as counsel while teaching law and acting as associate dean at New York University School of Law.
Birnbaum has been a member of the American Law Institute since 1983 and joined its Council in 1998. In 2013, she took Emeritus status, continuing her significant contributions to the legal field.
Currently, Birnbaum chairs the Regional Advisory Group for the Second Region and advises on the Restatement of the Law of Liability Insurance project. Her past contributions include serving as an adviser on both the Principles of the Law of Aggregate Litigation and the Complex Litigation projects.
Among her notable achievements, she secured a landmark ruling for State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, where the U.S. Supreme Court deemed a $145 million punitive damages award against the company to be unconstitutionally excessive. This victory is one of many in a career that includes representation of several Fortune 500 companies in high-stakes tort cases.
Birnbaum has acted as national or lead counsel for several major corporations, including Dow Corning Corporation during the breast implant litigation, Aventis Crop Science in significant class actions involving biogenetic corn, and Thompson-Delaco in the over-the-counter drug PPA litigation. Her experience extends to insurance coverage litigation and arbitration for major firms in locations including the United States, London, and Bermuda.
Her peer recognition is widespread; she has been repeatedly acknowledged by The National Law Journal as one of the top 100 most influential figures in the legal profession, an honor she received multiple times, including in 2013.
Birnbaum’s academic credentials include a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Arts from Hunter College, as well as a Bachelor of Laws from New York University School of Law. Her extensive background in law, combined with her leadership roles, underscores her prominence in the legal profession and her commitment to shaping impactful legal policy.
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