Biography
Brian Voke acts as lead trial counsel in the defense and trial of complex products liability, toxic tort, negligence, professional liability, directors & officers, employment and insurance coverage matters. As one of the firm’s principal trial attorneys, Mr. Voke has tried a variety of complex matters in the state and federal courts in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Connecticut, and Georgia.
He has more than 30 years experience defending and trying complex litigation for clients such as Axia NetMedia Corporation, Ford Motor Company, Mercedes Benz U.S.A., Nissan Motor Corp., American Honda Motor Company, Allied Waste Services, Tyco International, Ltd., Lafarge North America Inc., and other major corporations. He is also trial counsel for a variety of insurers including Berkley Public Entity Managers, Certain Underwriters at Lloyds, Church Mutual Insurance, Chubb, Burlington Insurance, Verus Underwriting Managers, Navigators Insurance, and Tokio Marine Kiln.
Mr. Voke, who holds a degree in Accounting from Boston College and who previously worked as an accountant, has also defended a wide variety of business litigation matters over the years for directors and officers, brokers and other professionals. Mr. Voke earned his law degree from Vanderbilt University School of Law.
Mr. Voke is the Past President of the Massachusetts Defense Lawyers Association and was a Faculty Member at Stanford Law School for the IADC 36th Trial Academy. He is a member of the Product Liability Advisory Council. In 2005 he was the moderator for a one-week program on product liability law for China Pacific Insurance. In 2006, Mr. Voke moderated a one-week program on product liability for the People’s Insurance Company of China in Guangzhou, China. In 2010, he lectured at Lloyd's of London on "Considerations in Defeating Class Certification in Products Liability Cases in the United States."
Representative Jury Trial Verdicts
Manuel DeSousa v. Gensco Equipment (1990), Inc.
United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts
Issue: Loss of two fingers allegedly caused by defective and unreasonably dangerous alligator shear
Result: Defense Verdict
Benoit v. Home Depot U.S.A., Inc.
Norfolk Superior Court, Norfolk, Massachusetts
Issue: Brain damage allegedly caused by goods negligently loaded onto tractor trailer
Result: Defense Verdict
Bartolomeo v. Lynn Ladder & Scaffolding Co., Inc.
Worcester Superior Court, Worcester, Massachusetts
Issue: Blindness allegedly caused by defective ladder
Result: Defense Verdict
Berarducci v. Ford Motor Company
United States District Court, District of Connecticut, Hartford, Connecticut
Issue: Crush injuries allegedly caused by defective transmission
Result: Defense Verdict
Royce v. Ford Motor Company
Hillsborough Superior Court, Southern Division, Nashua, New Hampshire
Issue: Death allegedly caused by defective transmission controls
Result: Defense Verdict
Ramcharran v. Carint
United States District Court, District of Massachusetts, Boston, Massachusetts
Issue: Degloving injury to hand crushed in printing press
Result: Defense Verdict
Hollis v. Ford Motor Company
United States District Court, District of Massachusetts, Boston, Massachusetts
Issue: Crush injuries allegedly caused by defective transmission controls
Result: Defense Verdict
Johnson v. National Sea Products Limited
United States District Court, District of Massachusetts, Boston, Massachusetts
Issue: Crushed hip allegedly caused by improperly packaged goods
Result: Defense Verdict
Saracen v. Figgie International, Inc.
United States District Court, District of Massachusetts, Boston, Massachusetts
Issue: Major damage to hotel allegedly caused by defective sprinkler system
Result: Defense Verdict
Hoffman v. Ford Motor Company
Norfolk Superior Court, Norfolk, Massachusetts
Issue: Personal injuries allegedly caused by defective seatback
Result: Defense Verdict
Reported Cases
Bower v. Bower, 2011 WL 3702086, (D.Mass. April 05, 2011)
Metlife Auto & Home v. ADT Security Systems, Inc., 2011 WL 1223023, (D.Mass. March 31, 2011)
Bower v. Mirvat El-Nady Bower, 2011 WL 1253897, (D.Mass. March 14, 2011)
Santander Consumer USA Inc. v. Walsh, 762 F.Supp.2d 217, (D.Mass. November 30, 2010)
Turner v. Boyle, 425 B.R. 20, (D.Me. March 29, 2010)
Milward v. Acuity Specialty Products Group, Inc., 664 F.Supp.2d 137, (D.Mass. July 31, 2009)
Tabb v. Journey Freight Internations, 584 F.Supp.2d 334, (D.Mass. September 26, 2008)
American Capital Corp. v. Blixseth, 575 F.Supp.2d 379, (D.R.I. August 21, 2008)
Plunkett v. Valhalla Investment Services, Inc., 409 F.Supp.2d 39, (D.Mass. January 03, 2006)
Tarr v. Werner Ladder Co., 2005 WL 6001395, (D.N.H. October 03, 2005)
Lutts v. Smithkline Beecham Clinical Laboratories, Inc., 1999 WL 102749, (N.D.N.Y. February 24, 1999)
Schubert v. Nissan Motor Corp. in U.S.A., 148 F.3d 25 (1st Cir. 1998)
Johnson v. National Sea Products, Ltd., 35 F. 3d 626 (1st Cir. 1994)
Morrell v. Precise Engineering, Inc., 36 Mass. App. Ct. 935 (1994)
Ramcharran v. Carraro Graphic Equipment, Inc., 823 F. Supp 63 (D.Mass. 1993)
Albano v. Colby College, 822 F.Supp. 840, (D.Me. June 08, 1993)
Boston Helicopter Charter, Inc. v. Agusta Aviation Corp., 767 F. Supp. 363 (D.Mass.1991)
Holbrook v. Andersen Corp., 130 F.R.D. 516, (D.Me. April 26, 1990)
