As a cutting-edge firm always tuned in to the latest developments of the law across the country, The Cook Group brings news of an Illinois law going into effect this summer, with a significant impact on Illinois cases and clients. For the first time in Illinois history, Pre-Judgment Interest has been enacted, applying to all...
Florida Amends State Summary Judgment Rule To Match Federal Standard
The Florida Supreme Court has amended the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure to adopt the federal summary judgment standard. The new standard is expected to make it easier for judges to grant summary judgment motions and should improve the fairness and efficiency of Florida’s civil justice system. The Supreme Court approved the...
The Cook Group Wins Appeal For Special Electric Company in New York’s Fourth Department Appellate Division
The Cook Group’s Alysa Koloms and Armand Kalfayan have successfully fought off an attempt at the appellate level to overturn three separate motions to dismiss granted to our client, Special Electric Company. On November 13, 2020, New York’s Fourth Department of the Appellate Division unanimously affirmed the decisions of...
Florida Court Vacates $9M Award in Asbestos-Talc Case against J&J
On August 5, 2020, the Florida 11th Judicial Circuit Court for Miami-Dade County ordered a new trial on damages in an asbestos-talcum powder case that resulted in a $9 million verdict against defendants associated with Johnson & Johnson earlier this year. In vacating the jury’s verdict, the Court concluded that the “jury’s...
Florida Conducts First Socially Distanced Trials
During the month of July, jury trials “resumed” in both state and federal courts in Florida, albeit with several restrictions. Florida’s first civil jury trial, People’s Trust Insurance Company vs. Yusem Corchero et al., was part of a voluntary pilot program that Chief Justice Charles Canady authorized in five circuits. The...
The Cook Group’s St. Louis Office Featured in the St. Louis Business Journal
The Cook Group is pleased to share that its St. Louis office has finalized a lease to move into the Peabody Building, one of the prime commercial buildings in downtown St. Louis. The St. Louis Business Journal published a release announcing the move. The new suite will provide the firm's St. Louis operation, which currently...
Justices Mendez, Shulman, and Scarpulla Elevated to Appellate Division in New York
On July 13, 2020, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced four new judicial appointments to the First Department of the Appellate Division. Elevated judges include Justice Manuel Mendez, current Coordinating Judge of the New York City Asbestos Litigation; Justice Martin Shulman, a long-time NYCAL judge who has presided over...
Missouri Court Reduces Huge Jury Award Based on Lack of Personal Jurisdiction
On June 23, 2020, the Missouri Court of Appeals rendered its decision in Ingham v. Johnson & Johnson, et al. No. ED107476, (Mo. Ct. App. E.D., 2020.) Johnson and Johnson appealed the trial court’s verdict awarding $550 million dollars in compensatory damages ($25 million per plaintiff) and $4.4 Billion dollars in punitive...
Supreme Court Defends LGBTQ Rights in Historic Decision
On Monday, the Supreme Court released its decision in Bostock v. Clayton County, Georgia, holding that an employer who fires an individual for being gay or transgender violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The opinion was the product of three separate appeals in factually similar cases. Each plaintiff was fired...
New Jersey Supreme Court Rules on Failure to Warn Standard
On June 3, 2020, the Supreme Court of New Jersey issued its decision affirming the New Jersey Appellate Division’s reversal of defendants’ summary judgment in the matter of Whelan v. Armstrong International, Inc., et al. The Court reinforced that product manufacturers and distributors can be held strictly liable for failure...

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