User:Johnannegrace/sandbox

= Michael Patrick Kelly, Esquire =

Early Life and Education
Michael Patrick Kelly was born and raised in Wilmington, Delaware. His father was a public official in Delaware Government and a pub owner. His mother was a secretary. Because of generous financial aid, he attended the prestigious Tower Hill School, graduating in 1975. Kelly co-captained the football team with his identical twin brother, Dr. John D. Kelly IV. Kelly also was shot put state champion two years and an undefeated wrestler junior and senior years.

Kelly studied English at Columbia University where he played varsity football and track. He co-captained the track team his senior year. He received the Gustave A. Jaeger Memorial prize for athletics. He was also a writer for the school daily newspaper.

Kelly attended The Dickinson School of Law where he was president of the student body. He was a member of the Corpus Juris Society and the Dickinson College boxing team. Kelly ended his amateur boxing as undefeated as a heavyweight and cruiserweight. In 1983, he received his J.D., from The Dickinson School of Law.

Career
Kelly worked as a trial attorney at Prickett, Jones, Elliott, Kristol & Schnee until 1987. In 1987, he moved to Hercules Incorporated where he was Counsel and Chief Environmental Counsel. Kelly started private practice as a trial attorney specializing in complex corporate, commercial, and environmental litigation. In 2000, he joined McCarter & English, LLP as Managing Partner of its Delaware Office. In 2009, he was elected as Chairman of McCarter & English, LLP.

In 2009, Kelly was appointed by Delaware Governor Markel to the Judicial Nominating Commission. The appointment remains today under Delaware Governor Carney. He is a Fellow of American Trial Lawyers. He has tried cases in most of the 500 states and boasts an unmatched win/loss record before juries, having defeated the best on their home court. In addition to Delaware Corporate law and products liability litigation, Kelly has served as counsel on Hatch Waxman and other intellectual property cases. He has represented senior executives and other high-profile individuals, with clients that have included "Smokin" Joe Frazier, The NY Giants, Diane Von Furstenberg Studio LP, Jay-Z, and several monarchs. He recently served as lead trial counsel for a former bank president in the first criminal fraud trial involving TARP recipient bank. Kelly's client was completely exonerated.

Kelly has appeared many times on national TV and is often quoted in national publications. He is a member of the "Irish 100". He also is passionate about pro bono service and under his tenure as Chairman of McCarter & English, LLP, the firm received the prestigious ABA Pro Bono Award for exceptional Pro Bono service. Kelly remains very active in numerous civic and charitable organizations.

Notable Cases
Kelly has played a lead role in many of the country's most significant and high-stakes products liability litigations such as AstraZeneca's National Senior Management Team and National Trial Team in the Seroquel litigation, and served as lead counsel in the Risperdal Stange v Janssen and Johnson & Johnson product liability trial. Kelly obtained summary judgment in the first Seroquel case filed in Delaware followed by a sweeping statute of limitations victory (Burrell et al v AstraZeneca). The decisive wins paved the way to settlements in the remaining 28,000 cases at the lowest per-case amount of any litigation of its kind. As Lead Trial Counsel in the products liability case Stange v Janssen and Johnson & Johnson, Kelly secured the lowest money damages award to date in the Philadelphia-based litigation.

Kelly's successful trail win record often involves precedent setting decisions that establishes new law. The In Re Aruba appraisal case resulted in the first Delaware appraisal decision to award market price well below the deal price. In Cigna v Audax, Kelly persuaded the Chancery Court to strike down commonly used merger agreement conditions on the grounds they were contrary to the Delaware General Corporation Law.

In additional Delaware Corporate law and products liability litigation, Kelly focuses on Hatch Waxman and other intellectual property cases, with experience that includes serving as co-counsel in defense of AstraZeneca's Nexium Hatch-Waxman Act settlement with generic drug manufacturers which generated multiple MDL antitrust class actions. Other notable intellectual property representation include a Lanham Ac t trial in which Kelly not only secured a judgment in excess of $100 million for his client, but also successfully argued for an award of $12 million in attorneys' fees--one of the largest fee awards in Delaware history.

Trial Verdicts
Kelly has litigated hundreds of high-profile cases nationally in both state and federal courts. He has brought more than 300 of these cases to trial and argued countless appeals, including over 20 cases before the Delaware Supreme Court. His victory in Cigna v. Audax, in the Delaware Chancery Court, established new law. Kelly persuaded the Delaware Chancery Court to strike down commonly used merger agreement conditions on the grounds they were contrary to the Delaware General Corporation Law. Kelly defeated a class action in Teamsters Local 237 et al v. AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals et al, a decision he defended before the Delaware Supreme Court and one which established new law with respect to consumer fraud class actions. Kelly prevailed in the In Re Aruba appraisal case which resulted in the first Delaware appraisal decision to award market price well below the deal price. Kelly served as trial counsel and later argued the appeal at the Delaware Supreme Court.

Kelly served as co-counsel in defense of AstraZeneca's Hatch-Waxman Act settlements with generic drug manufacturers from multiple MDL antitrust class actions. Kelly served on AstraZeneca's National Senior Management Team for the Seroquel litigation, one of the largest pharmaceutical mass tort suits ever. He was lead trial counsel in Delaware. He obtained summary judgment in the first Seroquel case filed in Delaware (Hopkins v. AstraZeneca) and a sweeping statute of limitations decision (Burrell et al v AstraZeneca). These victories paved the way to over 28,000 settlements in similar cases. Kelly served as lead negotiator in the settlement discussions. Kelly served on the national trial team for the In Re Risperdal Products Litigation for Johnson & Johnson. Kelly was lead trial attorney in the Philadelphia Court of common Pleas case, Stange v Johnson & Johnson et al, which resulted in the lowest monetary award to date. Kelly secured a major victory for Overstock.com at the Delaware Supreme Court, reversing a 7.3 million judgment in a unique case involving Delaware escheat law and a qui tam action. Kelly served as lead counsel at trial for a former bank president in the first criminal fraud trial involving a TARP recipient bank.