Thomas J. Hurney, a Member of Jackson Kelly PLLC and Leader of the Firm’s Health Care and Finance Practice Group, was a featured speaker at the Defense Research Institute (DRI) Product Liability Conference held February 4 – 6, 2015, in Las Vegas, Nevada. His topic “Product Misuse and the Internet” focused on the impact of the internet culture on corporate strategy with regard to product liability and litigation risks. He also addressed the effect of Big Data and its potential to supply notice to companies, particularly those who use social media and data to communicate with their customers.
Hurney has been recognized by several organizations for his skill as a trial lawyer. He was selected as Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers (ACTL) and an Advocate of American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA). He is rated AV Preeminent by Martindale-Hubbell and has been recognized in various peer publications, including The Best Lawyers in America®, Chambers USA – America’s Leading Business Lawyers, Benchmark Litigation and Law & Politics’ West Virginia Super Lawyers®. Super Lawyers has recognized him as a Top Ten West Virginia Lawyer for over five years. He has been listed in Chambers as a “Tier 1” litigator in health care law and Benchmark recognized him as a Litigation Star.
He is a frequent national speaker. In 2014, he was selected as one of 15 faculty members to teach at the International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC) Trial Academy at Stanford University Law School. In 2012, he traveled to Costa Rica to speak at a national health care conference sponsored by the Boston University School of Medicine. He has spoken on trial themes at the annual DRI Trial Tactics seminar in Las Vegas as well as for other DRI conferences on defending negligent credentialing and privileging actions against hospitals and on defending obstetrical claims. He has also spoken to state bar and defense organizations in several states on trial practice issues, including New Hampshire, Maine, Ohio, Vermont, Alabama, Iowa and West Virginia.