Mara Cusker Gonzalez

Mara Cusker Gonzalez, a partner in Dechert’s product liability and mass torts practice, has more than 15 years of experience representing life sciences companies and other manufacturers in complex litigation in federal and state courts. She is recognized for her expertise in cases involving the marketing and labeling of FDA-approved pharmaceuticals and biologics and claims relating to product safety, efficacy, and promotion.

Ms. Cusker Gonzalez has extensive experience defending pharma and biotech clients in personal injury, consumer fraud, RICO and False Claims Act cases filed by individuals, third-party payors, class action lawyers and attorneys general. She brings deep knowledge of federal multidistrict litigation (MDL) practice and state court coordinated proceedings and plays a lead role on national counsel and legal strategy teams. She has managed thousands of cases involving statins, antidepressants, anticonvulsants, antacids, pain medications, and chemotherapy. She has also represented a COVID-19 vaccine manufacturer in successfully asserting dispositive defenses under the federal Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness Act (PREP Act). Her work also includes representing large chemical manufacturers and home builders in cases alleging environmental exposure, and she recently represented a major manufacturer in a product liability litigation alleging that a product sold to the military is related to hearing loss.

Ms. Cusker Gonzalez is a member of Dechert’s nationally recognized team of product liability and mass tort lawyers, ranked Band 1 for Nationwide Product Liability & Mass Torts: The Elite by Chambers USA and Litigation Department of the Year for Product Liability by New York Law Journal in 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022. She and her team have a long track record of winning pretrial legal and expert motions that have led to the dismissal of entire product liability mass tort litigations. Ms. Cusker Gonzalez has also led successful appellate briefing defending those wins, including securing affirmance of summary judgment orders that shut down an MDL involving more than 3,000 cases in In re Lipitor (Atorvastatin Calcium) Marketing, Sales Practices & Products Liability Litigation (No II) MDL 2502, 892 F.3d 624 (4th Cir. 2018), and summary affirmance of an important federal preemption ruling in Gayle v. Pfizer, Inc., 452 F. Supp. 3d 78 (S.D.N.Y. 2020), aff’d 847 Fed. Appx. 79 (2d Cir. 2021).

Ms. Cusker Gonzalez has been recognized by Legal 500 US in the area of Product Liability, Mass Tort and Class Actions – Defense: Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices. In 2022 and 2023, she was appointed to Law360’s Product Liability Editorial Board. She co-authored the Mass Torts chapter of the American Bar Association’s comprehensive treatise, Business and Commercial Litigation in Federal Courts (5th ed. 2021) and contributed to Duke Law School’s Guidelines and Best Practices for Large and Mass-Torts MDLs (2018).

Ms. Cusker Gonzalez serves as co-hiring partner for Dechert’s New York office and has been recognized for her dedication in training and mentoring junior lawyers. In 2019, she was honored with a Dechert STARS Exceptional Teacher award. She is active in Dechert’s Global Women’s Initiative and co-chairs the women’s program in New York. She has maintained an active pro bono practice throughout her career, with a focus on representing individuals in immigration, employment and housing cases.

Prior to joining Dechert, Ms. Cusker Gonzalez was of counsel at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan and an associate with Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom.