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Dustin Herman

Overview

Dustin joined The Spangenberg Law Firm in 2015. Prior to that, he was an attorney with Romano Law Group in West Palm Beach, FL. Dustin’s practice focuses on pharmaceutical and medical device litigation as well as catastrophic injury cases. He handles complex product liability cases in both federal and state courts and is experienced in handling mass tort cases that have been consolidated into multidistrict litigation (or an “MDL”). Dustin is currently handling or has handled cases involving traumatic brain injuries, medical malpractice-wrongful death, product liability-wrongful death, trucking litigation, sexual molestation, gas drilling/fracking cases, and commercial disputes.

In 2013, Dustin was named as one of south FL’s “Most Effective Lawyers” by the Daily Business Review for his role in obtaining a $28.5 million verdict in a traumatic brain injury case. From 2014 – 2019, Dustin has been selected as one of the National Trial Lawyers’ “Top 100 Trial Lawyers” (for south Florida/Ohio); and in 2015, 2017, 2018, and 2019, Dustin was named as a “Rising Star” by Super Lawyers. Dustin is serving as the 2019 President of the National Trial Lawyers’ Top 40 Under 40. He was also named to the Best Lawyers® 2021 list, recognized for Product Liability Litigation – Plaintiffs.

Dustin lectures across the country on Daubert issues, discovery of ESI, and various other legal topics, and he is the author of numerous publications, including a chapter in the 4th Edition of AAJ’s “Anatomy of a Personal Injury Lawsuit,” which was released in March 2015 by Trial Guides and AAJ.

Dustin has been or is currently involved in the following mass tort cases:

  • MDL 2804; In re: National Prescription Opiate Litigation (member of Law and Briefing Committee)
  • MDL 2750; In re: Invokana (Canagliflozin) Products Liability Litigation;
  • MDL 2606; In re: Benicar (Olmesartan) Products Liability Litigation (member of the Daubert Briefing Committee)
  • Anti-Terrorism Litigation; 1:17-cv-08709, O’Sullivan, et al. v. Deutsche Bank AG, et al. (S.D.N.Y); 1:17-cv-00915, Holladay, et al. v. The Islamic Republic of Iran (D.D.C.) (member of Law and Briefing Committee and Discovery Committee)
  • Silicone Contaminated Eye Injection Litigation, pending in state courts in Arizona, New York, and Florida (co-lead counsel)
  • MDL 2545; In re: Testosterone Replacement Therapy Products Liability Litigation
  • MDL 2441; In re: Stryker Rejuvenate and ABGII Hip Implant Products Liability Litigation (one of the lead lawyers litigating cases in Florida state courts)
  • MDL 2331; In re: Propecia (Finasteride) Product Liability Litigation (member of the Science Committee)
  • MDL 2327; In re: Ethicon, Inc., Pelvic Repair System Products Liability Litigation
  • MDL 2244; In re: DePuy Orthopaedics Pinnacle Hip Implant Products Liability Litigation
  • MDL 2197; In re: DePuy Orthopaedics ASR Hip Implant Litigation
  • MDL 2179; In re: Oil Spill by the Oil Rig “Deepwater Horizon”

Dustin is a passionate supporter of local and national justice associations. He served on the Board of Directors for the Young Lawyers Division of the Florida Justice Association between 2014 and 2015 and is also a member of the Ohio Association for Justice and the American Association for Justice. Dustin served as co-Chair of AAJ’s Gas Drilling/Fracking Litigation Group from 2014-2016 and currently serves as co-Chair of AAJ’s Silicone Contaminated Eye-Injection Litigation Group.

Dustin received his undergraduate degree from the University of Florida. He received his law degree from Florida International University College of Law, where he was a member of the FIU Trial and Moot Court Teams. Dustin earned the Book Award in Evidence and multiple Dean’s List awards while in law school. In 2008, Dustin studied European Union law at Universidad de Sevilla and in 2009 he was given the opportunity to go to Florence, Italy where he studied International Criminal Law and other international policies concerning “Social Justice.”

Dustin and his wife, Dana, moved to Ohio from Delray Beach, FL in 2015. They live in University Heights, Ohio with their son, Dylan, and daughter, Ava.

Education

  • 2002, High School Diploma, East Lake High School, East Lake, Florida
  • 2007, Bachelor of Arts, Business Administration; Minor, Agricultural Law, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida
    • Fraternity: Pi Kappa Alpha
    • Deans List
  • 2010, Juris Doctor, Florida International University College of Law, Miami, Florida
    • Mock Trial Team: Finalist 2009 Zehmer Mock Trial Competition, Fort Lauderdale, Florida; 2010 AAJ Mock Trial Competition, Regionals, Phoenix, Arizona
    • Moot Court Team
    • Book Award: Evidence
    • Dean’s List: 2007, 2009
  • Summer 2008, Universidad de Sevilla, Seville, Spain
  • Summer 2009, Gonzaga University School of Law, Florence, Italy
  • September 2009-December 2009, Internship, Miami-Dade County Public Defender’s office
  • October 2010-July 2011, Broad and Cassel, Attorneys at Law, West Palm Beach, Florida
  • July 2011- August 2015, Romano Law Group, Lake Worth, Florida
  • September 2015-Present, Spangenberg Shibley & Liber LLP, Cleveland, Ohio

Professional Memberships

  • 2019, President, National Trial Lawyers’ Top 40 Under 40
  • 2017-2019, Co-Chair of AAJ’s Silicone Contaminated Eye Injections Litigation Group
  • 2015-2016, Co-Chair of AAJ’s Gas Drilling/Fracking Litigation Group
  • 2014-2015, Board of Directors, Young Lawyers Section, Florida Justice Association
  • Ohio Association for Justice
  • Florida Justice Association
  • American Association for Justice
  • The National Trial Lawyers
  • Public Justice
  • Federal Bar Association
  • Cleveland Academy of Trial Lawyers

Lectures

  • Negligent Drilling/Fracking Cases, American Association for Justice’s 2013 Winter Convention; Miami Beach, Florida; February 12, 2013.
  • The Neuroscience and Endocrinology Behind Propecia, Propecia Multidistrict Litigation Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee Meeting; St. Louis, Missouri; August 1, 2013.
  • The Legal Side of Social Media, Central Palm Beach County Chamber of Commerce-West; West Palm Beach, Florida; September 27, 2013
  • Damages: Loss of Capacity For Enjoyment of Life, Florida Justice Association’s Workhorse Seminar; Orlando, Florida; February 20, 2014
  • Demonstrating Your Case to the Judge and Jury through “Strategic Visualization”, Connectionology Seminar; Columbus, Ohio; March 12, 2014
  • Mass Torts Update, Connectionology Seminar; Columbus, Ohio; March 12, 2014
  • The Science Behind Propecia, Med School for Mass Tort Lawyers; Boca Raton, Florida; May 8, 2014
  • Gas Fracking – Takeaways For Case Selection, American Association for Justice’s Annual Convention; Baltimore, Maryland; July 28, 2014
  • Discovery of Electronically Stored Information, National Business Institute; Fort Lauderdale, Florida; December 11, 2014
  • Daubert Comes to Florida, National Business Institute; Fort Lauderdale, Florida; December 11, 2014
  • Daubert Comes to Florida, National Business Institute; West Palm Beach, Florida; December 12, 2014
  • Damages: Loss of Capacity For Enjoyment of Life, Florida Justice Association’s Workhorse Seminar; Orlando, Florida; February 19, 2015
  • Dealing With Daubert, Connectionology Seminars of America; Cleveland, Ohio; April 2, 2015
  • The Story of Propecia: It All Started With a Village of Pseudo-hermaphrodites From the Dominican Republic, Med School for Mass Tort Lawyers; Boca Raton, Florida; May 7, 2015
  • Daubert Strikes Back: Defending Your Experts, Florida Justice Association’s Annual Convention; Orlando, Florida; June 11, 2015
  • Daubert/Frye University, Florida Justice Association’s Workhorse Convention; Orlando, Florida; March 29, 2016
  • New Rules, New Strategies: Owning E-Discovery, Spangenberg Litigation Institute; Cleveland, Ohio; April 15, 2016
  • 7 Deadly Sins of E-Discovery: Adapting (or Perishing) in the Evolving World of Electronically Stored Information, Ohio Association for Justice’s Winter Convention; Cleveland, Ohio; November 4, 2016
  • Fundamental Concepts and Principles Which you Need to Know and Understand Regarding “E-discovery,” National Trial Lawyers Summit; Miami, Florida; February 7, 2017
  • The “Daubert Report” – Everything You Need to Know But Were Afraid to Ask – How Daubert Reports Can Win Cases and Lose Cases – Beware of the Minefields! Florida Justice Association’s Workhorse Seminar; Orlando, Florida; February 28, 2017
  • Strategic Visualization – Not Just At Trial, But Throughout the Entire Case, Spangenberg Litigation Institute; Cleveland, Ohio; April 21, 2017
  • Identifying and Handling Mass Tort Cases for the Single Event Firm, Ohio Association for Justice’s Annual Convention; Columbus, Ohio; May 5, 2017
  • Understanding the Two-Step Process of E-Discovery, Ohio Association for Justice’s Winter Convention; Cleveland, Ohio; November 3, 2017
  • The Pretrial Conference-Understanding How Cases Can Be Won and Lost in and Through the Pretrial Conference and Pretrial Statement-What You Need to Know! What You Need to Avoid!”, National Trial Lawyers Summit; Miami, Florida; February 4, 2018
  • Handling, Litigating, and Trying the Product Liability Case in Aquatic Injury/Death Cases Including Scuba Diving and Undersea Adventures, Florida Justice Association’s John Romano Workhorse Convention; Orlando, Florida; March 22, 2018
  • Daubert Motions and Motions in Limine, Spangenberg Litigation Institute; Cleveland, Ohio; April 27, 2018
  • Employing E-Discovery in Every Case: The Nuts and Bolts, Ohio Association for Justice’s Annual Convention; Columbus, Ohio; May 3, 2018

Awards and Honors

  • Best Lawyers®, Product Liability Litigation – Plaintiffs – 2021
  • President, National Trial Lawyers’ Top 40 Under 40, 2019
  • Super Lawyers, Rising Star (Ohio), 2017, 2018, 2019
  • Super Lawyers, Rising Star (Florida), 2015
  • The Trial Lawyer Magazine’s Top 40 Under 40, “Member Spotlight,” Spring 2017
  • The National Trial Lawyers: Top 100 Trial Lawyers (Ohio), 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019
  • The National Trial Lawyers: Top 100 Trial Lawyers (South Florida), 2014
  • The National Trial Lawyers: Top 40 Under 40 (Ohio), 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019
  • “Most Effective Lawyers” Personal Injury Category, for the South Florida area by the Daily Business Review, 2013

Case Results

  • $28,500,000 Verdict – Brain Injury; two-week brain injury trial involving a man who suffered a traumatic brain injury and developed dystonia after being head-butted by the manager of a used car lot.
  • $4.9 Million Settlement – Brain Injury; represented a woman who suffered a traumatic brain injury after a 4-foot section of an iron vent pipe fell on her head while she was sitting at her desk. The building was being remodeled, and the pipe fell after it was left unsecured by the general contractor and the plumbing subcontractor.
  • $1,250,000 Settlement – Lower Leg Amputation; represented a 73 year-old truck driver who suffered a below-the-knee amputation after he was run over by a fork lift at a delivery site.
  • $3,171,000 Verdict – Medical Malpractice/Wrongful Death; member of trial team in a month-long medical malpractice trial involving a man who suffocated after having an angioedema reaction to the drug, Lisinopril, and after the rehabilitation clinic that prescribed the drug waited 4 hours to transfer the patient to an emergency room.
  • $1,900,000 Settlement – Defective Hip; represented a woman who had to undergo multiple hip surgeries and suffered from serious complications from a persistent infection after having surgery to remove the defective hip.
  • Confidential Settlement – Defective Zimmer Hip; one-off hip case involving a Zimmer Trilogy Constrained Liner; drafted complaint; drafted response to dispositive 12(c) motion to overcome choice-of-law issue regarding the applicable statute of limitations; handled all fact and expert depositions; obtained Design History File, regulatory file, MDR’s, and other pertinent documents; performed all document review; hired experts; worked with experts in creating expert reports; conducted mock trials; drafted responses to and successfully defended against Daubert motions; drafted response to and successfully defended against motion for summary judgment; worked case up for trial. Case settled two days before trial started.
  • $358 Million Global Settlement – In re: Benicar (Olmesartan) Products Liability Litigation (MDL 2606); represented clients who suffered gastrointestinal damage from a blood pressure medication. Dustin served on the Daubert Briefing Committee for the Plaintiffs’ Executive Committee.
  • $4.29 Million Global Settlement – Re Propecia (Finasteride) Product Liability Litigation (MDL 2331); represented clients who suffered alterations to their hormone system and damage to the histoarchitecture of the penile tissue after taking a drug for hair loss. Dustin served on the Science Committee for the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee.
  • $750,000 Settlement –Defective Hip; represented a woman who had to undergo a revision surgery and who suffers from permanent pain and disability after receiving a defective hip implant.
  • $500,000 Settlement – Assisted Living Facility Malpractice/Wrongful Death; represented the family of an 82-year-old woman with dementia who died after falling out of an unsecured window on the third floor of an assisted living facility.
  • $290,000 Settlement – Car Crash; obtained a settlement in excess of the $250,000 policy limits in a disputed liability case in which our client suffered a concussion and two herniated discs in her neck, but had not undergone surgery yet.
  • MDL 2804; In re: National Prescription Opiate Litigation; currently representing cities and counties against the manufacturers and distributors of prescription opioids. Pete Weinberger of Spangenberg Shibley & Liber is on the Plaintiffs’ Executive Committee and is Co-Liaison Counsel for the MDL, which is centralized in the Northern District of Ohio in front of Judge Dan Polster. Dustin is a member of the Law and Briefing Committee and helped the PEC win a monumental victory in defeating the Defendants’ Motions to Dismiss, per Judge Polster’s Order dated December 19, 2018.
  • Anti-Terrorism Litigation; 1:17-cv-08709, O’Sullivan, et al. v. Deutsche Bank AG, et al. (S.D.N.Y); 1:17-cv-00915, Holladay, et al. v. The Islamic Republic of Iran (D.D.C.); currently representing U.S. soldiers and Gold Star families in lawsuits against some of the largest and most powerful banks in the world. Dustin serves on the Law and Briefing Committee and Discovery Committee. The lawsuit, brought by a team of some of the best attorneys in the nation, seeks to hold the banks accountable under the Anti-Terrorism Act and the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act for providing hundreds of billions of dollars to Iran and its de facto terrorism arm, Hezbollah.

Publications

Outside the Courtroom

Dustin and his wife, Dana, have been married since 2011. They moved to Ohio in 2015 so they could be close to Dana’s (big!) Italian family. They now live in University Heights, Ohio with their son, Dylan, and daughter, Ava.

Dustin was born and raised in Florida and loves doing anything on the water. He especially enjoys fishing, spearfishing, scuba diving, and wakeboarding. He also loves snowboarding and tries to make the best of the long Cleveland winters. “It’s not where you’re at, but who you’re with that counts,” he says. “It’s why we moved to Cleveland in the first place. I love pasta Sundays and spending time with family.”

Dustin attended the University of Florida and is a life-long Gator fan. Now that he is a Clevelander, he has made the transition to becoming a Browns, Cavs, and Indians fan. He says he will also root for Ohio State (as long as they aren’t playing the Gators).

Even when he is not in the office, Dustin is almost always available to his clients by email or on his cell phone. He says: “If you love what you do, you never work a day in your life. And I truly feel that way about being a trial lawyer.”

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