Dena Rachel Young

Dena Young is Senior Counsel in the Firm’s Consumer Protection practice group. She concentrates her practice in the area of complex consumer litigation, prosecuting actions against pharmaceutical and product manufacturers for violations of state and federal law.

Before joining the Firm, Dena worked for prominent law firms in the Philadelphia region where she worked on personal injury and mass tort cases involving dangerous and defective medical devices, pharmaceutical, and consumer products including Talcum Powder, Transvaginal Mesh, Roundup, Risperdal, Viagra, Zofran, and Xarelto. She also assisted in the prosecution of cases on behalf of the U.S. Government and other government entities for violations of federal and state false claims acts and anti-kickback statutes.

Recently, the Honorable Brian R. Martinotti appointed Dena to serve on the plaintiffs’ steering committee (PSC) of MDL 2921 in the Allergan BIOCELL Textured Breast Implant Products Liability Litigation, situated in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey. In this case, Dena represents plaintiffs diagnosed with breast implant associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma (BIA-ALCL), a deadly form of cancer caused by Allergan’s textured breast implants.

Early in her legal career, Dena represented clients diagnosed with devastating asbestos-related diseases, including mesothelioma and lung cancer. Cases she handled resulted in millions of dollars in settlements for her clients.

During law school, Dena represented defendants in preliminary hearings and misdemeanor trials while working for the Defender Association of Philadelphia. She also clerked for the Animal Protection Litigation section of the United States Humane Society. In 2008-2009, Dena worked for the Honorable Renee Cardwell Hughes of Philadelphia’s Court of Common Pleas.

In 2010, she received her Juris Doctor degree, with honors, from Drexel University’s Thomas R. Kline School of Law, where she founded the School’s Student Animal Legal Defense Fund chapter.

Dena is admitted to practice in state courts in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.

Speaking Engagements

Plastic, Chemicals and Metal in the Body – Part I: Essure, Talc, Breast Implants, Harris Martin, Washington, D.C. (October 25, 2018)
Quick Hits: Litigations Emerging and Wrapping Up: “Breast Implant Cancer Cases,” Mass Torts Made Perfect, Las Vegas, Nevada (October 24, 2019)

Breast Implant Associated Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma, New Jersey Association for Justice Meadowlands Seminar, East Rutherford, New Jersey (Nov. 22, 2019)

Mass Torts: What’s Hot and What’s Not in 2020: BIA-ALCL, Pennsylvania Association for Justice, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania (January 16, 2020)

Professional Leadership
American Association for Justice (AAJ)
AAJ Women Trial Lawyers Committee
Litigation Group Leader, AAJ’s Allergan Biocell Textured Breast Implants Litigation Group
Pennsylvania Association for Justice (PAJ)
PAJ Women Trial Lawyers Committee
Future Leaders Committee, Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association
American Bar Association
Business and Community Leadership
Board Member, Kaiserman JCC
Pro-Bono Attorney, Animal Legal Defense Fund