DOAR Provides Trial Consulting Services in Victory for 5,600 Women in Gender Discrimination Class Action Trial Against Pharmaceutical Giant

LYNBROOK, N.Y., May 19 /PRNewswire/ -- DOAR Litigation Consulting LLC supported the Plaintiffs and their team in obtaining a landmark verdict for the class of 5,600 current and former female employees of Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation before Judge Colleen McMahon in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. The law firm representing the class was Sanford Wittels & Heisler LLP.

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On May 19, 2010, the nine jurors announced a unanimous punitive damages award of $250 million, capping off the sweeping verdict they delivered for the Plaintiffs on May 17, 2010. The jury found Novartis liable for discriminating against women in pay, promotions to entry-level management, and pregnancy related treatment. The jury also awarded approximately $3.3 million in individual compensatory damages to the twelve named plaintiffs. Additional damages will be awarded to the class for back pay and class-wide compensatory damages at a later date.

DOAR's trial consulting team provided a full range of services including: trial strategy, jury research, jury selection, preparing both expert and plaintiff witnesses for testimony at trial, developing persuasive graphics for opening statements and closing arguments and in support of expert witness testimony, as well as managing the electronic presentation of documents, video and demonstratives at trial. The majority of the jury research and witness preparation took place in DOAR's Digital Court Facility located at DOAR's headquarters in Lynbrook, NY. DOAR also provided and maintained the extensive technology used in the courtroom by both sides.

Katherine Kimpel, a partner with Sanford Wittels & Heisler LLP, and one of the lead trial lawyers on the case, stated, "We simply could not have litigated this case in the winning manner that we did without the invaluable services provided to us by Ray McLeod and the rest of the DOAR team."

DOAR's team was led by Raymond McLeod, Director of Trial Consulting at DOAR, who has spent the better part of his career specializing in the design and presentation of electronic evidence for use during trials, as well as the creation and maintenance of complex mediums used during these engagements. Commenting on the trial, Ray explained, "It is rewarding to have played an integral role in a case of such significance."

David Sanford, founding partner of Sanford Wittels & Heisler and another lead trial lawyer on the case, praised the contributions of DOAR as follows: "DOAR is simply the best trial consulting firm in the United States. There is no way we could have presented a complex class action case with over 1,000 exhibits and over 500 demonstratives without John Hicks and Ray McLeod. And it is unlikely that we could have selected the jury which returned a great verdict without the insights provided by Roy Futterman. We are all so grateful that we had them on our team, and we are all so proud to have worked together in achieving what is a truly unprecedented victory."

About DOAR Litigation Consulting LLC

DOAR Litigation Consulting, the nation's preeminent litigation services company, provides Discovery Management and Trial Consulting services at the highest standards in the industry. DOAR supports its clients at every level in any aspect of an engagement from discreet consulting assignments to full-scale, long-term engagements. DOAR provides the scale and leverage sought by small and mid-tier law firms as well as the resources and expertise to support the largest law firms and corporations.

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SOURCE DOAR Litigation Consulting LLC