Sean P. Fahey

Sean is a partner and the chair of the firm’s Health Care + Life Sciences Department, where he leads the group’s litigation, white collar, regulatory, intellectual property, and transactional practices. He has a wealth of experience serving as national coordinating and strategic counsel in complex, multidistrict products liability and health care litigation.

Sean represents several of the largest pharmaceutical, medical device, and life science companies in their high-stakes cases, and serves as strategic settlement counsel and coordinating counsel in parallel litigation, including DOJ and regulatory investigations as well as congressional hearings. He is also experienced in other sectors such as building materials, energy, automotive, and food and beverage.

Sean has served as national and lead trial counsel for Medtronic, LivaNova, International Business Machines (IBM), The Coca-Cola Company, Delta Airlines, Monroe Energy, Sunoco, Michelin, and Volkswagen. He is also counsel for the National Football League in the ongoing concussion litigation.

Clients benefit from Sean’s ability to anticipate the likely trajectory of a litigation based upon the opposing and co-counsel involved, the venue, and the claims. He prepares clients with a preemptively-focused defense plan that aims to minimize costs wherever feasible. Sean’s courtroom experience also informs the risk management advice he provides to boards of directors, senior management, and executives.

Sean is a member of the firm’s management team as well as the Executive and Partner Compensation Committees, and served as the firm’s representative to Diversity Lab, an incubator at Harvard for innovative ideas and solutions that boost diversity and inclusion in law.

• Serve as national coordinating counsel and trial counsel for class actions involving several product lines for Medtronic. Thousands of cases were filed across the U.S. for Medtronic’s product Infuse, as well as a putative RICO claim that was dismissed. The firm achieved favorable preemption decisions resulting in the dismissal of hundreds of cases, and favorably settled many more.
• Obtained dismissal of a False Claims Act suit on behalf of Medtronic in an alleged whistleblower matter.
• Settled federal securities class action on behalf of Medtronic after dismissal was overturned on appeal.
• Advise Eli Lilly and Company (Lilly) on its strategy related to litigation involving Axiron, a testosterone replacement (“low-T”) treatment. Lilly is a named defendant in product liability cases in the U.S. that allege cardiovascular and related injuries from taking Axiron. Most of the cases are consolidated in an MDL in the Northern District of Illinois. The firm negotiated a favorable settlement at an earlier stage and a lower cost than other defendants.
• Lead trial counsel and settlement counsel for a major pharmaceutical company in multidistrict, class action litigation involving claims that the diabetes medication Avandia causes heart attacks, strokes and other medical problems. Case also involves third-party payor, consumer fraud, insurance company subrogation and taxpayer class actions; state attorneys general litigation, government investigations, and Canadian litigation. The firm’s pre-trial victories and innovative settlement strategy resulted in hundreds of dismissals and favorable resolution of other claims.
• Defended a major pharmaceutical company in third-party payor cases alleging the company misrepresented the safety of a diabetes drug.
• Represent LivaNova (formerly Sorin Group), leading medical device company, in federal multidistrict litigation alleging that the Sorin 3T Heater-Cooler System caused non-tuberculosis mycobacterial infection in patients. The system is used to regulate patient blood temperature during open heart surgery. More than 125 cases are included in the MDL (MDL 2816, M.D. Pa.). Defense is ongoing and the firm settled a majority of the claims one year after the case was filed.
• Represents the National Football League (NFL) in connection with In Re: National Football League Players’ Concussion Injury Litigation, MDL 2323 (E.D. Pa) and advises the NFL on issues involving settlement claimants and disputes with plaintiffs who opt out of the settlement.

• LMG Life Sciences: Life Sciences Star, Product Liability (2022)
• Chambers USA: Product Liability & Mass Torts, USA Nationwide (2017-2025); Healthcare, Pennsylvania (2023-2025); Litigation: Product Liability, Pennsylvania (2025)
• Benchmark Litigation: “Local Litigation Star” in Pennsylvania (2021-2025)
• Best Lawyers in America®: Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Defendants (2026), Product Liability Litigation – Defendants (2013-2026)
• Legal 500 United States: Product Liability Litigation (2013-2025)
• Listed in the life sciences section of Who’s Who Legal: The International Who’s Who of Business Lawyers