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J. Brian Jackson Partner

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Charlottesville T +1 434 980 2221 F fax +1 434 980 2253
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Brian Jackson is the managing partner of the Charlottesville office and the co-leader of McGuireWoods’ Crisis Management & Incident Response practice group. He is known for his success in trying high-exposure jury cases on behalf of energy, transportation and manufacturing companies in various jurisdictions throughout the United States.

Energy Litigation

Brian serves as a go-to resource relating to natural gas transmission and distribution for pipeline owners, operators and construction companies. He has experience with securing right-of-way access for the protection of underground assets and has substantial knowledge of the regulatory and investigatory issues arising out of catastrophic explosions, fires and contact incidents.

Brian leads rapid deployment teams for cases involving catastrophic incidents and has particular experience with the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration corrective action orders and NTSB investigations of these events. Over the course of his career, he has managed responses to pipeline ruptures, explosions and damages cases from Texas to Massachusetts, where he has coordinated onsite crisis management, interfaced with federal and state regulatory agencies, ensured evidence preservation, and managed the coordination of experts.

Litigation Management

Brian has experience in all aspects of litigation management, including first- and third-party claims, class actions, mass actions, personal injury defense and insurance coverage. He has served as national coordinating counsel for discovery and litigation and managed Department of Transportation audits and investigations as well as National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigations. He is well-versed in the complex interplay of regulatory bodies, litigation response and the necessary public relations issues that all arise from catastrophic events. His significant jury trial experience brings a perspective to crisis management that allows him to see a path forward.

Selected by Woodward/White, Inc. for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America, for Product Liability Litigation and Personal Injury Defense from 2009-2021, Brian was named “Lawyer of the Year,” by that organization for Personal Injury Defense in 2019.  While earning his undergraduate degree from Hampden-Sydney College, he was honored as a member of Phi Beta Kappa, Omicron Delta Epsilon, Phi Sigma Iota and Phi Alpha Theta. Brian has been a faculty member of the National Trial Advocacy Institute since 2007, where he was honored in 2020 with the “William J. Brennan, Jr. Award” for his commitment to teaching young lawyers the skill of advocacy.

Experience

Energy Litigation

  • Managed all civil litigation related to an overpressure event that led to a series of explosions and fire in three neighboring towns, including the design and execution of a settlement strategy for 7 consolidated class action cases.
  • Managed litigation and NTSB investigation for major transmission line rupture in West Virginia.
  • Managed litigation and expert witness (both litigation and investigation) privilege issues for major transmission line rupture in Kentucky.
  • Managed company investigation, regulatory investigation in home explosion in Pennsylvania.
  • Managed company investigation, regulatory investigation in home explosion in Massachusetts.
  • Representation as lead trial counsel to natural gas transmission company in right-of-way access injunction matter.

Motor Carrier Litigation

  • Representation as coordinating counsel for one of the largest publicly held trucking companies in the country.
  • Representation on general day-to-day matters of one of the largest privately held trucking companies in the country.
  • Representation as lead trial counsel of defendant in a post-collision fuel-fed fire case resulting in the death of the plaintiff.
  • Representation as lead trial counsel of a defendant in a wrongful death matter arising out of rear-end collision.
  • Representation as lead trial counsel of a wrongful death matter resulting in 13 fatalities and a 23-car pileup in ice and snow.
  • Representation as lead counsel for trucking company in defense of matter resulting in decapitation of plaintiff.
  • Representation as general counsel to various trucking companies regarding day-to-day operation issues, including employment, regulatory issues and risk management.

Product Liability and Personal Injury Litigation

  • Representation as lead counsel for a manufacturing defendant in food contamination litigation.
  • Representation as lead trial counsel for healthcare company in wrongful death case.
  • Representation as lead trial counsel for a U.S. automobile manufacturer in roof strength and handling and stability claims for sport utility vehicles.
  • Representation as trial counsel of a foreign automobile manufacturing company regarding two-point passive restraints.
  • Representation as trial counsel of a U.S. automobile manufacturing company regarding two-point passive restraints.
  • Representation and serve as program coordinator for two alternative risk financing mechanism for high risk groups.

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