Jae Hong Lee

Dr. Jae Hong Lee is a trial lawyer and physician who has represented clients in the pharmaceutical, medical device, dietary supplement, food, cosmetics, consumer products, and aviation industries. Dr. Lee has litigated individual actions, class actions, and multidistrict litigation across a broad range of matters in the fields of product liability, toxic torts, trade secrets, patent disputes, FDA regulation, Proposition 65, concussions, and advertising disputes.

As a trial lawyer, Dr. Lee has experience in all stages of litigation, having represented clients in pre-litigation case assessment, pleadings, fact discovery, expert discovery, motion practice, trial preparation, trial, and post-trial motion practice. He has deposed numerous fact and expert witnesses, and has cross-examined fact and expert witnesses at trial. Dr. Lee has briefed and argued dispositive motions, Daubert motions, discovery motions, and evidentiary motions in both state and federal courts. He has maintained an active pro bono practice. Dr. Lee led the expert discovery team in Vietnam Veterans of America v. Central Intelligence Agency, helping to obtain health care benefits for military veterans who were the subjects of chemical and biological warfare experiments. He has been awarded the State Bar of California’s Wiley W. Manuel Award for Pro Bono Legal Services twice over the course of his career.

As a medical professional, Dr. Lee uses his expertise in public health, FDA regulations, quantitative methods, clinical research, basic science research, and biophysics to inform his practice. He has degrees from Johns Hopkins University, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Harvard School of Public Health, and the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law. Dr. Lee completed a surgical internship at Yale prior to performing clinical research for five years at UCLA in traumatic brain injury and cerebrovascular disease.

Dr. Lee has given numerous presentations at national and international conferences and frequently delivers seminars and webinars for clients. His publications include articles and commentary in legal journals, peer-reviewed medical journals and newspapers, including Neurosurgery, Journal of Neurosurgery, Law360, Skywritings, Berkeley Technology Law Journal, The Baltimore Sun, Ventura County Star, The Laryngoscope, Experimental Neurology, Journal of Neurotrauma, Pediatrics and The Lancet. He also co-authored a book chapter, “Pharmaceutical Product Liability,” in Principles and Practice of Pharmaceutical Medicine (3rd Ed.).

Dr. Lee has been recommended by The Legal 500 in product liability litigation and has been ranked twice as a “Northern California Rising Star” by Super Lawyers. Prior to joining Dechert, Dr. Lee was of counsel at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan.

A major nutritional supplement company in achieving favorable settlements in hundreds of pending cases in multidistrict litigation, by providing medical and scientific expertise, alternative causation assessments and representation at settlement discussions.
A leading manufacturer of local anaesthetic drugs in pain pump litigation.
U.S. military veterans, who were subjects in chemical and biological warfare experiments, to obtain health care benefits and government recognition of their long-term injuries.
A leading manufacturer of consumer plumbing products in the dismissal of three consecutive Proposition 65 litigation cases without the need for public monetary settlements.
The brand-name manufacturer of a widely used anticoagulant pharmaceutical product in multiple litigation matters, achieving favorable settlements for the client.
A leading manufacturer of ophthalmologic products in performing scientific analysis and recruiting a top biostatistics expert to help in an advertising dispute with a major competitor.
A European manufacturer of cosmetic products in FDA regulatory counselling.
A pharmaceutical company in reviewing and drafting FDA regulatory documents, including "Dear Healthcare Provider" letters and adverse event reports.
A manufacturer of pet products in a class action product liability suit.
An electronic components manufacturer in a trade secrets lawsuit.
A major medical device company in a nearly three-month trial as trial counsel.
A beverage company in litigation relating to concurrent investigations by the FDA, Institute of Medicine and the United States Congress.
A manufacturer of fire-fighting foam in toxic tort actions.
A manufacturer of analgesic products in numerous state and federal class action suits.
A leading pharmaceutical company in opioid litigation in California, Idaho, and Arizona.
A major medical device company in multidistrict litigation involving hernia mesh products.
One of the best-known cosmetic companies in asbestos-related litigation.
A homeowner in litigation concerning the Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program in California.

Includes matters handled at Dechert or prior to joining the firm.

"Vaccine Liability in the COVID-19 Era", Presented by Jae Hong Lee during the Rossdale Group Webcast—Covid-19 Vaccine Legal Issues and Pharmaceutical Liability (January 14, 2021)
“Medical Monitoring Claims in Class Action Litigation: Legal, Medical and Public Health Perspective,” presented by Jae Hong Lee at the 59th Annual Health Law & Legal Medicine Meeting of the American College of Legal Medicine (February 23, 2019, Los Angeles, CA)

American Medical Association
American College of Legal Medicine, Fellow, 2011-present
Barrister, Louis M. Welsh American Inn of Court, 2011-2013

Jae Hong Lee, MD, MPH, FCLM

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San Francisco

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