I am a partner and senior trial attorney at Villari, Brandes & Giannone. For more than 20 years, I have dedicated my career to representing clients who are the victims of permanent injury caused by medical malpractice, defective products and catastrophic tractor-trailer and motor vehicle collisions. Among my clients in medical negligence cases are the parents of infants and children who were the victims of birth trauma or who were the victims of medical or nursing negligence during their newborn, toddler or adolescent years.
I was instrumental in establishing national legal precedent on behalf of the injured victims of tractor-trailer wrecks. In that regard, I was counsel for the Estates of two people killed in a motor vehicle wreck caused by a negligent tractor-trailer driver and trucking company in the land mark New Jersey Supreme Court ruling in Puckrein vs. ATI Transport, Inc. (establishing that a shipper of goods can be held liable for hiring an incompetent independent contractor trucking company/motor carrier which is involved in a subsequent motor vehicle collision).
My litigation successes include many multi-million dollar recoveries for clients in medical malpractice cases and tractor-trailer/motor vehicle collision cases throughout Pennsylvania and New Jersey, including in each state’s most highly conservative counties.
My practice also includes representing victims of environmental disasters and toxic torts. From 2009-2014, I prosecuted a mass toxic tort/environmental pollution lawsuit against the Tennessee Valley Authority regarding the devastating December 22, 2008, coal fly ash spill disaster at TVA’s coal-fired electricity generation plant in Kingston, Tennessee. It was the largest environmental disaster ever on U.S. soil (even larger than the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico). I was one of the lead attorneys in the case. In the liability phase of the trial, I and the other members of the trial team secured a verdict in favor of the victims of the disaster. Subsequently, after an extensive, year-long mediation, we secured from TVA a $27.8 million settlement for over 800 property owners.
I have also designed and taught courses on behalf of the Pennsylvania Bar Institute regarding tractor-trailer and motor vehicle collision cases, and medical malpractice/birth trauma.
I am a member of:
I am also an Investigator in the Investigative Division of the Philadelphia Bar Association’s Commission on Judicial Selection and Retention, and am a member of the Philadelphia County Bar Association, and the nationally recognized American Association for Justice, including its Birth Trauma Litigation Group and its Interstate Trucking Group.
My firm has represented thousands of injured clients and their families throughout Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Washington, D.C. and other areas of the country.
State | Status | Acquired | Updated |
---|---|---|---|
DC | Good Standing | 2007 | 06/08/2022 |
NY | Currently registered | 1999 | 02/24/2022 |
NJ | Active | 1990 | 04/06/2022 |
PA | Active | 1990 | 05/28/2022 |
Legal answers | 1 |
Legal guides | 0 |
Award name | Grantor | Date Granted |
---|---|---|
Super Lawyer | Pennsylvania Super Lawyers | 2015 |
Super Lawyer | Pennsylvania Super Lawyers | 2014 |
Super Lawyer | Pennsylvania Super Lawyers | 2013 |
Super Lawyer | Pennsylvania Super Lawyers | 2012 |
Super Lawyer | Pennsylvania Super Lawyers | 2011 |
Super Lawyer | Pennsylvania Super Lawyers | 2011 |
Super Lawyer | Pennsylvania Super Lawyers | 2010 |
Super Lawyer | Pennsylvania Super Lawyers | 2009 |
Super Lawyer | Pennsylvania Super Lawyers | 2008 |
Super Lawyer | Pennsylvania Super Lawyers | 2007 |
Title | Company name | Duration |
---|---|---|
Trial Lawyer and Shareholder | Villari, Brandes & Giannone, P.C. | 1999 - Present |
Trial Lawyer | Villari, Golomb & Honik, P.C. | 1998 - 1999 |
Trial Lawyer | Levy, Angstreich, Finney, Baldante, Rubenstein & Coren, P.C. | 1990 - 1998 |
National Security Research Associate | Council on Economic Priorities | 1985 - 1987 |
Association name | Position name | Duration |
---|---|---|
Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association | Asst. Secretary, Executive Board of Directors | 2014 - Present |
Pennsylvania Innocence Project | Member of Board of Directors | 2013 - Present |
Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association | Member of Board of Directors | 2007 - Present |
Philadelphia County Bar Association | Member | N/A |
American Association for Justice | Member | N/A |
Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association | Member | N/A |
Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association | Legal Education Coordinator | 2011 - 2014 |
Publication name | Title | Date |
---|---|---|
CEP Publications | [Book]: Banning Nuclear Tests: Verification, Compliance and Savings (co-authored book with Betty Goetz-Lall) | 1987 |
CEP Publications | [Book]: Security without Star Wars: Verifying a Ban on Ballistic Missile Defense (co-authored book with Betty Goetz-Lall and Rosy Nimroody) | 1986 |
School name | Degree | Graduated |
---|---|---|
Temple University School of Law in Philadelphia | JD - Juris Doctor | 1990 |
Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts | BA - Bachelor of Arts | 1985 |
Conference name | Title | Date |
---|---|---|
Pennsylvania Bar Institute Lecture Series | Litigating Tractor Trailer Accidents | 2014 |
Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association Lecture Series | Dangers in Discovery re. Social Media | 2013 |
Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association Lecture Series | Truck Wrecks: Rules, Regulations and Reptiles | 2012 |
Temple University Beasley School of Law Career Planning Seminar | Lawyer Career Planning: “What is a Trial Lawyer?" | 2011 |
American Association for Justice Annual Conference | Current Public Policy Issues Affecting Growing Minority Populations: “Evaluating the Strengths and Weaknesses of Your Case in Light of Public Sentiment and Racial Bias” | 2011 |
Pennsylvania Bar Institute Lecture Series | Litigating Tractor Trailer Accidents | 2011 |
Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association Lecture Series | Winning Your Case Before Trial – Discovery Strategy in Personal Injury and Environmental Tort Litigation | 2011 |
HB Litigation Conferences, National Teleconference | Coal Ash & Slurry Contamination | 2010 |
Pennsylvania Bar Institute Lecture Series | Discovery - Where Most Cases Are Won or Lost | 2009 |
Pennsylvania Bar Institute Lecture Series | Litigating Tractor Trailer Accidents | 2007 |
Pennsylvania Bar Institute Lecture Series | Litigating Tractor Trailer Accidents | 2005 |
Pennsylvania Bar Institute Lecture Series | Birth Trauma - Medical Malpractice | 2004 |
Case name | Outcome |
---|---|
Sample of results in medical malpractice / negligence cases (click here): | Many multi-million dollar recoveries for my clients |
Sample of results in tractor-trailer collision cases (click here): | Many multi-million dollar recoveries for my clients |
Posted by Mary
August 20, 2014
David Hollar, Medical malpractice Attorney on May 10, 2013
Relationship: Worked together on matter
Mr. Brandes is highly recommended. Throughout pre-litigation investigation, discovery, trial or appeal, Paul's diligence, creativity and attention to detail is rarely matched. Mr. Brandes' professionalism benefits all of his clients and their claims.